March 2012 by The Washington Diplomat

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■ VOLUME 19, NUMBER 3 PERSIAN GULf

Has U.S. Debate Over Iran Devolved Into Warmongering? As tensions with Iran escalate, the U.S. seems to be inching closer to yet another military conflict. But is the endless debate over what to do about Tehran, played out in a chorus of think tank analyses and media reports, creating an aura of inevitability that effectively changes the war question from “if” to “when?” PAGE 8

■ WWW.WASHDIPLOMAT.COM

Thaw in iceland Iceland’s modern-day Vikings gorged on bloated credit

and got a cold shower when their economy melted down in 2008, a harbinger of things to come for Europe. But today, the country is emerging from the deep financial freeze, though tempers

MIDDLE EAST

Cash-Strapped U.S. Must Get Creative To Aid Arab Spring The U.S. simply can’t open up its wallet for a modern-day, Mideast-style Marshall Plan to remake the Arab world, but it still has plenty to offer to help the region and try to shape history. PAGE 10

culture

Pink Pride Blooms For Cherry Centennial The city will be bursting with pink power this spring as it commemorates the 100th anniversary of the National Cherry Blossom Festival. PAGE 28

still flare in the volcanic nation. PAGE 15

TOWN

■ MARCH 2012

S MORGAN story and photos by Dave

Seminara

PEOPLE Of WORLD INfLUENCE

Two of Washington’s Best-Estab lished Enclaves Also Two of Its Most Eclectic

Asia Hand Foresees Trouble in North Korea On one side, couples browse posh furniture boutiques for antiques or stroll along canal paths on lazy Saturday afternoons. Several blocks — and a world — away, thumping dive bars and immigrant-owned eateries attract hipsters on raucous Saturday nights. But these scenes only speak to one side of these multifaceted, well-established yet surprisingly eclectic neighborhoods.

March 2012

LUXURY LIVING

Continued on next page

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Page 21

Don’t say Victor Cha didn’t warn us. Like many experts, Cha, a former top advisor on Asia at the White House, calls the leadership transition in North Korea “a watershed moment,” but he also believes a major upheaval is brewing in the nuclear-armed nation — and the next president will need to prepare to contain the fallout. PAGE 6

DIPLOMATIC SPOUSES

Ex-Beauty Queen Down to Earth on Three Continents A former yet reluctant Miss Chile, Maria Verónica Forsyth was perfectly happy being a stay-at-home mom raising three children on three continents while her husband, Peruvian Ambassador Harold Forsyth, pursued high-profile careers in diplomacy, civil service, politics and journalism. PAGE 29

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March 2012

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March 2012

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8th annUal EmBassY

GolF toUrnamEnt Call 301.933.3552 For sponsorship inFormation Page 4

The Washington Diplomat

March 2012

CONTENTS THE WASHINGTON DIPLOMAT

March 2012

10 Arab Spring aid

[ news ] 6

21 Adams Morgan

Civil War photographs

mEdiCal

[ luxury living ]

NEighbOrhOOdS

PEOPlE OF WOrld iNFluENCE Victor Cha thinks America’s pivot toward Asia makes perfect sense given China’s rise, but he warns that the U.S. shouldn’t take its eyes off something just as pivotal: North Korea.

Two of Washington’s most distinctive neighborhoods also couldn’t be any more different from each another, though they share an enduring appeal that continues to define D.C living.

diPlOmaCy The U.S. just doesn’t have the money to do some kind of Marshall Plan for the Middle East in the wake of the Arab Spring, but that doesn’t mean America is empty-handed.

iNTErNaTiONal rElaTiONS Later this month, Cuba celebrates a milestone with the visit of Pope Benedict XVI, but another important milestone won’t exactly be toasted: the 50th anniversary of the U.S. embargo.

COvEr PrOFilE: iCElaNd Iceland’s economic meltdown was a harbinger of things to come in Europe, but the volcanic island nation is bucking standard prescriptions for recovery and coming in from the cold — on its own terms.

Stem cell research, advances in genetic therapy and “personalized” medicine all herald a new frontier in fighting and even reversing vision loss.

POliTiCS What can you do in five minutes? Drink coffee. Check email. Apparently you can also start your own corporation from the comfort — and anonymity — of your own keyboard.

COvEr: Photo taken at the Embassy of Iceland by Lawrence Ruggeri.

As those tiny pink buds flourish around the city during the National Cherry Blossom Festival, so too will various exhibits and events commemorating the 100th bloom of Japan’s gift to Washington, D.C.

The time and place — Civil War and Afghanistan — and the tools — gunpowder and laser-guided missiles — may be different, but the Corcoran unites America’s warriors from the past and present in two powerful shows.

Film rEviEWS The underlying threat of violence pervades “The Forgiveness of Blood,” as an ancient legal code provides eye-for-an-eye justice in modern Albania.

EvENTS

PhOTOgraPhy

diNiNg The retirement of venerable chef Liliana Dumas has rejuvenated Acacia Bistro and Wine Bar, as Ravi Narayanan infuses Mediterranean freshness into the restaurant while retaining its understated character.

A former yet reluctant Miss Chile, Maria Verónica Forsyth is perfectly happy being behind the scenes while her Peruvian husband takes the diplomatic spotlight.

arT Indian-born artist Anil Revri uses geometric grids and optic illusions to find self-illumination while offering his viewers a window into the divine.

[ culture ] diPlOmaTiC SPOuSES

ThEaTEr “Really Really” at Signature Theatre is a really sad look at the “me” generation of millennials who think the world revolves around them.

iNTErNaTiONal aFFairS The possibility of military conflict with Iran is becoming very real, but is the endless Beltway debate over what to do about Tehran needlessly pounding the drumbeat for war?

Film FESTivalS The Environmental Film Festival is back for its 20th anniversary, having become one of D.C.’s largest cultural events.

CiNEma liSTiNg

EvENTS liSTiNg

diPlOmaTiC SPOTlighT

WOrld hOlidayS / aPPOiNTmENTS

ClaSSiFiEdS

rEal ESTaTE ClaSSiFiEdS

P.O. Box 1345 • Silver Spring, MD 20915-1345 • Phone: (301) 933-3552 • Fax: (301) 949-0065 • E-mail: news@washdiplomat.com • Web: www.washdiplomat.com Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Victor Shiblie director of Operations Fuad Shiblie managing Editor Anna Gawel News Editor Larry Luxner Contributing Writers Michael Coleman, Patrick Corcoran, Rachel G. Hunt, Stephanie Kanowitz, Ky N. Nguyen, Veronika Oleksyn, Gail Scott, Dave Seminara, Gina Shaw, Gary Tischler, Lisa Troshinsky Photographer Jessica Latos account managers David Garber, Chris Smith graphic designer Cari Bambach The Washington Diplomat is published monthly by The Washington Diplomat, Inc. The newspaper is distributed free of charge at several locations throughout the Washington, D.C. area. We do offer subscriptions for home delivery. Subscription rates are $25 for 12 issues and $45 for 24 issues. Call Fuad Shiblie for past issues. If your organization employs many people from the international community you may qualify for free bulk delivery. To see if you qualify you must contact Fuad Shiblie. The Washington Diplomat assumes no responsibility for the safe keeping or return of unsolicited manuscripts, photographs, artwork or other material. The information contained in this publication is in no way to be construed as a recommendation by the Publisher of any kind or nature whatsoever, nor as a recommendation of any industry standard, nor as an endorsement of any product or service, nor as an opinion or certification regarding the accuracy of any such information.

March 2012

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PEOPLE OF WORLD INFLUENCE

Victor Cha

Cha Praises U.S. Pivot, But Urges Preparation for Pyongyang Implosion by Michael Coleman

on’t say Victor Cha didn’t warn us. Cha, a senior advisor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) who served as former President George W. Bush’s top advisor on Asia, recently told The Washington Diplomat that a major upheaval is brewing in North Korea — and the world should prepare to contain the fallout.

The recent death of longtime Korean dictator Kim Jong-il, coupled with the rushed succession of his son Kim Jong-un — whom most observers view as woefully unprepared for the job — is a recipe for instability in the isolated, economically ravaged, nuclear-armed nation, says Cha, a veteran Asia hand. “It’s my view that the next president, the 45th president of the United States, is going to have to deal with a major crisis in North Korea,” he predicted, calling the dear leader’s death “a watershed moment.” “The son is 27 years old and likes to play video games, has never worked a day in his life, and all of the sudden he’s in charge?” Cha said. “And when they say he’s in charge, I really believe he is in charge. It’s not because he wants to be in charge, but because the North Koreans know no other system of government.” To that end, he discounts the notion of a “leadership-by-committee” system of ruling elites pulling the strings in a post-Jongil government, pointing out that “never before in North Korea’s history of totalitarian, personality-cult leadership has anything like this been attempted.” “There has always been the one guy at the top in North Korea who decides everything. Kim Jong-un is going to have to decide everything and he’s not going to know what to do.” He adds, ominously:“I just don’t see how they can hold this together.” Cha, relaxed and congenial during an hour-long interview with The Diplomat in his CSIS office overlooking K Street, explores the ins and outs of the closed-off communist regime in a new book titled “The Impossible State: North Korea, Past and Future” due out this spring. Cha is certainly qualified to hold forth on the subject. He holds the Korea Chair at CSIS and is director of Asian studies at Georgetown University, where he returned in 2007 after serving for three years as director for Asian affairs on the National Security Council.While at the White House, he was responsible for Japan, the Koreas, Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific island nations. Cha also served as U.S. deputy head of delegation for the six-party nuclear talks with North Korea during Bush’s second term.

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In his Diplomat interview, Cha explored the so-called American “pivot” toward Asia as a primary new focus of U.S. foreign policy, as well as relations with China, North and South Korea, Burma and others in the region. Cha said the term “pivot” rankles some in the American foreign policy establishment because it implies that the United States has essentially been ignoring Asia, even though he believes it simply means the country is paying more attention to the region than before. “It fits well with U.S. domestic political and economic priorities,” Cha said of the pivot.“This administration needs to get the economy going before next year, and a big part of their strategy has been to increase exports, creating jobs and trade. When you look around the world today, there aren’t any other economies booming except Asia.” He said the shift in American policy is Photo: Center for Strategic and International Studies

“

If you look around the world today, the primary potential great power that can arise in the international system in the future is China. The primary area of economic growth is going to be Asia. It’s natural that you would focus on this area.

”

— Victor Cha, Korea chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies also a natural response to China’s emergence as a global leader — and a regional hegemony. “While it may not necessarily be an allout competition, part of it is in response to China’s rise and their pushing on the Southeast Asians and supporting the North Koreans,” Cha said.“If you look around the world today, the primary potential great power that can arise in the international system in the future is China. The primary area of economic growth is going to be Asia. It’s natural that you would focus on this area.” To that end, while the Pentagon and other federal agencies brace for big budget cuts in a severely constrained U.S. economy, programs aimed at improving Asian

relations are likely to remain robust. “The one place they’re not going to cut is Asia,” Cha said. Indeed, the region has been spared from much of the proposed cuts to the 2013 Pentagon budget, which shifts resources and weaponry from places like Europe toward Asia and the Pacific. Cha also believes that smaller Asian nations such as the Philippines and Vietnam, increasingly wary of China’s growing influence and assertiveness, will continue to court U.S. sympathy and support — while also welcoming China’s lucrative economic market. “They don’t want it to become a competition between the U.S. and Asia,” Cha cautioned, noting that these countries are

worried about being “crushed in the middle” of a U.S.-China power struggle in the region. “They would like a strong political and strategic relationship with the United States, while having good economic relations with China,” he explained. “Having the U.S. there politically or militarily keeps the Chinese honest, even as these countries’ economic futures are all tied to the Chinese market.” Cha describes his political philosophy as somewhat right of center but not nearly as far right as neoconservatives such as former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton or former Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz. Cha said he found great satisfaction working on Asia issues in the Bush White House because the administration was actively engaged in the region. He also says Bush “knew how to handle the Chinese.” “He had experience because his father was ambassador to China and had been to China many times,” Cha said, adding that the Chinese respected the younger Bush’s blunt approach to diplomacy. “The Chinese didn’t always like everything that he said or did, but they did respect him because he was very clear and consistent and he always stuck to his

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March 2012

word,” Cha said. “Sometimes the Chinese hated it — for example when the president met with the Dali Lama and attended the Congressional Medal of Honor ceremony. But he also decided to go to the Olympic Games in Beijing,” despite exhortations to skip them on human rights grounds, Cha pointed out. The Georgetown professor argues that Obama’s position toward China has been more opaque, and that frustrates Beijing. “The Obama administration started out very positive on China the first year and the press started talking about a G-2 with the Chinese and the Americans solving the world’s problems,” Cha recalled. “Then the Chinese didn’t deliver. In year two of the administration, it was back to selling arms to Taiwan and meeting with the Dali Lama. In 2010, the Chinese became more assertive in the South China Sea and North Korea. “Now we’ve got the pivot,” Cha continued. “They see a lot of variation in our behavior and they’re not sure what to make of it. With Bush, they knew what he was doing.” Yet other foreign policy experts praise Obama for that very reason: throwing the Chinese off kilter. In the beginning of his administration, for instance, Obama extended a hand to the Chinese but gradually escalated the rhetoric over human rights violations, currency manipulation and intellectual property rights. Many say he then shrewdly seized on Beijing’s aggression and miscalculations with its neighbors to re-establish a U.S. presence in the Pacific — both militarily, deploying Marines to Australia, and economically, through the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). “On the accomplishment side of the ledger, credit Barack Obama with a very smart policy in Asia,” Robert Kagan, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, wrote in Foreign Policy recently.“By taking advantage of China overplaying its hand in the South China Sea and generally unnerving most of the region, the Obama administration has reconfirmed the central role of the United States in East Asia.The opening of a new base in Australia is a powerful symbol of America’s enduring strategic presence in the region. The opening with Burma obviously has both strategic motives and strategic implications.” Burma, otherwise known as Myanmar, represents perhaps the most tangible achievement of Obama’s carrot-stick approach to engagement while maintaining sanctions. Cha says the oppressive junta’s landmark decision to release democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi and allow her to run for parliament signaled that Burma was ready to deal more openly with the rest of the world.The decision also sent a clear message to China. “It shows that military regimes have their problems but they can be willing to open up,” Cha said.“I think military regimes like this come to a point in their own history where they understand if they do not reform they will die. It’s also, interestingly, a quiet manifestation of how uncomfortable some of these countries are with China’s growth. “They understand they cannot simply become another province of China,” he continued.“The Chinese are very interested in Burma’s mineral resources and access to the Indian Ocean. For these two reasons, the Burmese are very interested in trying to improve their relationship with the outside world.” Cha notes that America’s interest in Burma, while not critically important, is strategically vital nonetheless. “It occupies a very important region of Southeast Asia,” he told The Diplomat. “I don’t think we’re deeply, materially interested in all their resources. It’s just a country that for a long time has been isolated and now it can be a country in which we could transform the relationship.” Yet Cha laments that the same can’t be said of North Korea since Kim Jong-il’s death, insistMarch 2012

ing that the United States missed an opportunity to make a bold, definitive statement about the country and its future. “In the aftermath of the Arab Spring, how could we not do this bigger?” Cha asked.“I don’t know how much of that we are doing. I get the sense we are doing less of it than I’d like to see. “Ronald Reagan made a very clear statement about where the United States stood on the end of the Cold War,” Cha added. “With the death of Kim Jong-il and potentially really big change in North Korea, we don’t have that big statement.” When Cha worked for Bush, he advocated a fairly hard-line approach toward Pyongyang, often calling the strategy “coercive diplomacy.” “People always think diplomacy is just engagement — what can I give you to get you to do something,” he said. “But … diplomacy is actually a combination.What can I do to get you to do something and if you don’t, here’s the bad stuff coming down the pike.” Cha also contends that a single-pronged approach to dealing with the hermetically sealed, mercurial regime — dangling carrots — has never worked. “You couldn’t simply offer them things because their record with diplomacy is that they will take as much as you give them and ask for more,” Cha said. “It’s really a combination of the two. I give credit to Bush and to Obama for really staying tough on the sanctions part because that is sort of the backbone.” Cha said Bush tried to engage the North Koreans in his first few months in office, but soon thereafter declared the country part of his infamous “axis of evil” in 2002, along with Iran and Iraq. Four years later, Pyongyang tested an atomic device, becoming a rogue nuclear power. Cha defends Bush’s controversial “axis of evil” label, which critics argue sped up the North’s desire for nukes to protect itself from an Iraqstyle invasion. “It was informed by a visceral dislike not just of the regime but of the human rights disaster in North Korea,” he said. “As a head of state, it was inconceivable to [Bush] that another head of state could allow his people to starve like that while they were building nuclear weapons.” A major factor in whether the United States talks to North Korea is, of course, South Korea. Like many Asia experts, Cha believes an eventual collapse of North Korea and reunification with the South is inevitable. He is quick to give Seoul credit for its relationship with the United States, calling the country of nearly 50 million people one of America’s “most important allies in the world.” “They’re a real standup ally in the sense that there are a lot of allies that free ride,” Cha explained. “South Korea, when it became successful, really gave back. They participated in Iraq, participated in peacekeeping operations way outside their area — East Timor, Lebanon, all sorts of places.” However, Cha said the Bush administration viewed the so-called Sunshine Policy of President Kim Dae-jung as too lenient because it was willing to engage in unconditional talks with North Korea, which made it difficult to coordinate policy. Cha claims a “little tough love” from the Bush regime (suggested by him) helped to pressure the South Koreans into a closer alignment with U.S. policy, notably under current President Lee Myung-bak, who took a much tougher line against the North, tying aid to progress on the nuclear front. Still, Cha argues that South Korea remains illprepared to deal with a North Korean collapse, although Lee has acknowledged a need to brace for the worst. “I think to his credit the current president is the first president in over a decade that has said to his country we have to start thinking about this and preparing for it. It’s not because he wants to collapse the regime; he just sees the futility,” Cha said. “He’s just very practical and

sees that the regime is economically gone. It had a sick dictator and young, inexperienced successor. What idiot wouldn’t want to prepare?” So when will this collapse occur? “It’s certainly closer with the death of Kim Jong-il,” Cha replied. “It is inevitable because in today’s day and age, just look at all these dictatorships that are falling. The ones that aren’t falling are opening up.There is no way they will be able to hold this together.” China, meanwhile, is assessing the situation in North Korea from its own unique set of interests, which go beyond merely wanting to avoid an influx of impoverished refugees flooding its borders should the North fall apart. “China has two very core interests,” Cha explained.“It doesn’t want [North Korea] to collapse because it doesn’t want a unified Korea as a military ally of the United States on its border. They also want to extract the mineral resources out of North Korea for their two poorer inland provinces that are right on the border. “The strategic problem is how to convince China that reunification is not bad for their interests,” Cha added. “I think that is objectively true. Economically, politically, China today does 100 times more business with South Korea than North Korea. The problem is that China just doesn’t trust the United States, Korea or Japan when it comes to a reunified Korea. With this pivot to Asia, they probably trust us even less. We need to try and engage China in different ways.” Michael Coleman is a contributing writer for The Washington Diplomat.

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International Affairs

Persian Gulf

Iran: Has the Drumbeat of Debate Led to Inevitable March to War? by Dave Seminara

he last American troops left Iraq in December and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta recently announced that the United States hopes to end the combat portion of its mission in Afghanistan by mid-2013. But those hopeful developments have been tempered by a growing standoff with Iran over its nuclear program and alleged support for terrorism. Is the United States inching closer to yet another military conflict? And is the endless debate over what to do about Iran, played out in the media and in a chorus of think tank pieces, creating an aura of inevitability that effectively changes the war question from “if” to “when?”

Tensions Flare Hawks in Israel and the United States have been making the case for regime change in Iran for years, but in the last few months the rhetoric has escalated to a fever pitch. In October, U.S. authorities foiled an alleged Iranian plot to assassinate Saudi Arabia’s ambassador in Washington. Less than a month later, a troubling report on Iran’s nuclear program from the International Atomic Energy Agency motivated the United States and European Union to slap some of the toughest sanctions to date on Iran in a bid to choke off its oil revenues. An EU ban on oil imports prompted Tehran to warn that it would cut off supplies to certain European nations first to pre-empt the phased-in embargo. Meanwhile, U.S. sanctions on Iran’s Central Bank are severing its access to the international banking system because the penalties effectively block any foreign financial institution that deals with the Central Bank from the U.S. market. In addition, U.S. officials have lobbied countries such as China to wean themselves off Iranian oil, while getting the Saudis to ramp up production and fill the gap.To further tighten the economic noose, Congress is also debating how to cut Iranian banks off a critical global financial telecommunications network known as Swift. Iran has responded with threats to block the Strait of Hormuz, passageway for about one-fifth of the world’s daily oil supply, sparking fears of a spike in energy prices that could cripple the world economy. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei also bluntly warned that Iran would help militant groups fighting Israel. Iran blames Israel and the United States for what it says is a covert campaign of assassinations and high-tech sabotage, the latest being the Jan. 10 killing of a 32-year-old Iranian scientist who worked at Iran’s Natanz uranium enrichment plant, the fourth such attack in the last two years. Meanwhile, tensions between Iran and Israel ratcheted up another notch on Feb. 13, as bombers targeted Israeli Embassy staff in Georgia and India and possibly Thailand. Several people were hurt in the attacks and Israel blamed Iran, which denied it was involved. National Intelligence Director James Clapper Jr. testified before the Senate on Jan. 31 that Iran was prepared to launch terrorist attacks inside the United States. Clapper also said that the U.S. didn’t know if Iran would

Page 8

“

Photo: Department of Defense, MC1 Joshua Lee Kelsey, U.S. Navy

The loudest voices calling for military action against Iran are many of the same voices who got us into war with Iraq before 2003. — Stephen Walt

”

professor of international affairs at Harvard University

“eventually decide to build nuclear weapons,” but that caveat was buried deep into most media accounts of the testimony. Meanwhile, caveats and caution have been thrown out the window in the GOP presidential debates, with all of the candidates save Ron Paul seemingly competing to see who would bomb the country’s nuclear facilities first. Newt Gingrich has advocated regime change in Iran, backs assassinating Iranian scientists, and said that if Israel strikes Iran, America should ask:“How can we help you?” Mitt Romney also backs regime change in Iran and has said that “if we re-elect Barack Obama, Iran will have a nuclear weapon. And if you elect Mitt Romney, Iran will not have a nuclear weapon,” though he hasn’t provided details on how exactly he would prevent this from happening. In one December debate, former Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann stated that Ahmadinejad had said that “if he has a nuclear weapon he will use it to wipe Israel off the face of the earth. He will use it against the United States of America.” In reality, Iran has always publicly maintained that its nuclear program is peaceful — and within its legal rights under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty — and denies it plans to develop a nuclear weapon. But no one on stage

A demolition charge is detonated by U.S. sailors from the mine countermeasures ship USS Scout in the Strait of Hormuz as part of a training exercise in late 2010. In response to escalating international pressure, Iran has threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, passageway for about one-fifth of the world’s oil, while the U.S. has warned it would retaliate to keep the vital shipping lane open.

felt compelled to challenge Bachmann, who also at one point said she would shut down the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, even though Washington severed diplomatic relations back in 1980. President Obama, too, has had his fair share of mocking for extending a hand to the Iranian regime early in his administration, an engagement that yielded no results. Nevertheless, it may have helped paved the way for building unprecedented international pressure on Iran, and many experts say multilateral sanctions are beginning to bite. The value of Iran’s currency has nose-dived, the economy is tanking, food prices are soaring, the government is fractured, and Gulf neighbors have united against Tehran, whose main regional ally, Syria, is under siege.

Beltway Boldness Despite the economic stranglehold on Iran, the clamor for even bolder action has only grown louder. John Bolton, the hawkish former U.S. envoy to the United Nations, published an op-ed in USA Today titled “On Iran, sanctions are not the answer,” in which he argued that the U.S. should consider “preemptive military action to break Iran’s (nuclear) program” sooner rather than later. Indeed, prominent voices inside the Beltway, from think tanks to the media, have outright called for regime change in Iran, or at the very least exhaustively pored over every aspect of what a military intervention would entail. Consider for instance a string of detailed analyses over the last few months that have meticulously dissected the

The Washington Diplomat

March 2012

case for war from the Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP), which was also among the first groups to raise the issue of sanctioning Iran’s Central Bank late last year. Many of the group’s policy watches and reports have openly called for military intervention, such as “Israel’s Closing Window to Strike Iran” by David Makovsky and “Only Threat of Military Action Will Stop Iran” by Michael Eisenstadt. Similar briefs have been issued for Syria. Others have said that at the very least, the U.S. should adopt a more hawkish stance toward Iran’s intransigence. For example, Michael Singh, managing director of the Washington Institute, argued that the United States should resume a more active program of military exercises in the Gulf region, bolster the defense capabilities of Gulf allies, and make clear to Iran that the U.S. is prepared to use selective military force in response to further provocations. “It is frequently observed that the consequences of military action are unpredictable, and rightly so; it should only ever be used with caution and deliberation,” Singh wrote in Foreign Policy. “However, excessive risk aversion that results in a failure of deterrence and feeds Iran’s sense of impunity may, paradoxically, be just as risky.The most prudent course is neither belligerence nor passivity, but a robust posture that makes Tehran think twice.” The media, too, seems to have embraced a tougher line in debating the pros and cons of military confrontation. In December, the Washington Post editorial board criticized the Obama administration for “public disparaging of the force option,” sending a “waffling signal” to Tehran.The latest issue of Foreign Affairs had policymakers and pundits buzzing with the bluntly titled article “Time to Attack Iran:Why a Strike Is the Least Bad Option” by Matthew Kroenig, a professor at Georgetown University. A year earlier, another prominent article by Jeffrey Goldberg on the cover of the September 2010 Atlantic magazine examined how an Israeli airstrike would unfold in “The Point of No Return.” More recently, an extensive piece titled “Will Israel Attack Iran?” on the front page of the New York Times magazine in late January concluded that “Israel will indeed strike Iran in 2012.” Of course, it’s hardly a secret that Israel considers a nuclear-armed Iran to be a non-starter, although the chatter that it will finally attack Iran’s nuclear facilities this spring or early summer — right around the peak travel season, possibly affecting gas prices — has reached a crescendo. Yet how much does this incessant analysis and speculation contribute — intentionally or not — to the drumbeat toward war? Does breaking down the different scenarios for a military intervention build up the case for one, or does it simply lay out policy options and open up a necessary intellectual debate?

Sober Debate or Reckless Warmongering? The Washington Diplomat consulted a half dozen Iran experts from across the political spectrum, and while most agreed that a U.S. or Israeli military strike against Iran is far from inevitable, they offered starkly different opinions on how serious a threat Iran poses and what role anti-Iran forces inside the Washington establishment play in stoking fears. “The loudest voices calling for military action against Iran are many of the same voices who got us into war with Iraq before 2003,” said Stephen Walt, a professor of international affairs at Harvard and co-author of the controversial 2007 book “The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy,” which argued that the war in Iraq could not have happened without the influence of the Israel lobby. “The experience of the Iraq War has sobered some people up March 2012

but not everybody. All of this is based upon a considerable exaggeration of Iran’s actual capabilities.” He added that this exaggeration was “at least in part less about U.S. interests, than a perceived threat to Israel.” The liberal Center for American Progress recently came under fire for alleged anti-Semitism when several Jewish groups criticized, among other things, a ThinkProgress blog written by Eli Clifton that linked the current push for sanctions against Iran by the lobby group AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee) to the campaign against Saddam Hussein in the run-up to the Iraq War.

“

You see them in the streets chanting ‘Death to America’ — what do you think they mean? Look at Iran and how they treat their people. That’s what they’d like to do to us.

”

— Michael Ledeen freedom scholar at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies

Walt has termed this type of buildup “mainstreaming war,” the notion “that an attack on Iran is likely to happen and savvy people-inthe-know should start getting accustomed to the idea,” he wrote in a 2010 posting on his Foreign Policy blog.“In other words, a preemptive strike on Iran should be seen not as a remote or far-fetched possibility, but rather as something that is just ‘business-as-usual’ in the Middle East strategic environment. If you talk about going to war often enough and for long enough, people get used to the idea and some will even begin to think it is bound to happen sooner or later,” he argued. “In an inside-the-Beltway culture where being ‘tough’ is especially prized, it is easy for those who oppose ‘decisive’ action to get worn down and marginalized,” he added.“If war with Iran comes to be seen as a ‘default’ condition, then it will be increasingly difficult for cooler heads (including President Obama himself) to say no.” But Michael Ledeen, a freedom scholar at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, rejects the notion that Israel’s interests are a factor in the U.S. response to Iran and points out that Iran has already proven to be a grave threat to American interests. “It has nothing to do with Israel and it’s not just a nuclear question,” he told The Diplomat. “Iran’s been waging war against the United States since 1979. They kill Americans every day, or try to.” Ledeen said Iranian agents were killing Americans with improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in Iraq and Afghanistan and referred to alleged Iranian involvement in a foiled 2007 plot to blow up fuel tanks at John F. Kennedy Airport. Despite his dire view of the Iranian threat, Ledeen said he doesn’t support military action against Iran — at least not yet. Matthew Kroenig, on the other hand, said that conducting a “surgical strike” on Iran’s nuclear facilities was the “least bad option” if Iran appears to be on the brink of obtaining a nuclear weapon capability. His “Time to Attack Iran” piece in Foreign Affairs unleashed a torrent of criticism from experts like Walt, who wrote that it was a “textbook example of warmongering disguised as analysis.” “It’s been the stated policy of two administrations that a nuclear Iran is unacceptable and that all options are on the table to prevent

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See IRAN, page 44

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Diplomacy

Arab Spring

Short on Money, U.S. Digs Deeper To Find Ways to Support Arab Spring by Patrick Corcoran and Anna Gawel

or better or worse, it’s belt-tightening time in Washington. And unfortunately for U.S. policymakers, the budget crunch did not have the courtesy to wait for a worldchanging foreign policy crisis to settle down.

More than a year after the outbreak of civil unrest in nations across the Arab world, there’s still not even a consensus on how to describe the unrest — the proverbial Arab Spring has been interspersed with Arab Awakening, Arab Winter, etc. However it goes down in the history books, the future of the Arab world is being rewritten through revolution. In Syria, the Assad regime clings to power through increasingly violent attacks against opposition forces. In Egypt, despite the removal and pending prosecution of Hosni Mubarak, Tahrir Square remains a locus of protest, as Egyptians press the military to stop dallying and hand the reins of power to a new civilian government. Libya and Yemen are trying to envision a future without entrenched authoritarian rule, while Tunisia, the spark that lit the Arab flame, is working to see if Islam is compatible with democracy. Many experts view this as the kind of transformative moment that took place after the Cold War when Eastern Europe rid itself of communism, with Western financial help.After all, stagnant economies marked by cronyism, corruption and unemployment were some of the main reasons that drove Arab protesters to challenge their ossifying political systems. Yet in Washington, foreign aid borders on a dirty word these days, even though it’s never taken up much of the U.S. budget — contrary to popular opinion, foreign assistance amounts to roughly 1 percent of total federal expenditures. Still, the proposed 2013 budget for the State Department and USAID saw a modest bump from the year before, with a plan to allocate more funds toward “transitioning” Arab governments. Any sizeable increase in American tax dollars being sent abroad, however, is out of the question. Money can also be a double-edged sword, as evidenced by the recent spat over Egypt’s decision to prosecute 19 Americans — including a Cabinet member’s son — for trying to influence the country’s political system through democracy-building civil society groups. The flare-up has jeopardized $1.3 billion in annual U.S. military assistance to Egypt, with Congress threatening to withhold the money until the Americans are released and Egypt’s military leaders take tangible steps toward democracy. On the one hand, the incident reveals the enduring power of money to induce change — with the $1.3 billion in military aid one of the few forms of leverage the U.S. retains over the cash-strapped Egyptian government. On the other hand, Egypt’s military has rebuffed demands to release the Americans and insisted that foreign meddling would not be tolerated — a sign of how sensitive the perception of outside interference, especially from Washington, remains in

Page 10

UN Photo / Iason Foounten

“

We don’t have the luxury for going to Congress and just getting more money. We have to be creative.

”

— Robert Hormats

undersecretary of state for economic, energy and agricultural affairs

the Arab world. A recent Gallup poll also showed that more than 70 percent of Egyptians don’t even want U.S. funding anyway (although the survey notes that opposition could stem from conditions attached to the aid, including obligations under the 1979 IsraelEgypt peace treaty). So, given the dearth of resources to support fledgling governments and democratization movements, how can the U.S. government ensure that countries in the midst of historic transition lay the groundwork for political and economic reforms, without sparking a backlash? Is there even a role for the United States to play, financial or otherwise, or should the people of the Arab world sort out their own destiny?

No Mideast Marshall Plan America’s current fiscal straitjacket differs enormously from its position during two comparable regional transformations. Under the Marshall Plan in the late 1940s and early 1950s, the United States pumped $13 billion — more than $250 billion in today’s dollars — into Western Europe to aid its reconstruction from World War II and counter the Soviet Union. In the early 1990s, as the Cold War receded and

Demonstrators protest the ongoing use of weapons by rebel militias inside Tripoli and the lingering sense of lawlessness as the newly formed Libyan government struggles to assert itself in the war-torn nation. Although Libya can at least fall back on its oil wealth, the economies of most Arab Spring nations are in tatters, while the U.S. has scarce resources to provide an infusion of funds.

Eastern Europe lurched to capitalism, the U.S. government again, despite a sharp recession, was able to drum up significant amounts of money for the burgeoning democracies. Today, the coffers are empty and the mood is skeptical.Take the case of Egypt.Aside from being a lynchpin nation that’s the most populous in the Arab world, it’s also enjoyed a decades-long security partnership with the United States under Mubarak.Yet the scope of post-Arab Spring non-military assistance has been relatively paltry given Egypt’s regional and bilateral importance. Obama initially called for $1 billion in debt forgiveness for Egypt, with some additional economic aid. “It was not a very big package — not very impressive to the Egyptians,” Thomas Carothers, vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told The Diplomat. Despite that, the outlays were drastically curtailed by the Senate Appropriations Committee and never even made it through the House of Representatives. What was proposed for other Arab nations was even more limited. President Obama managed to eventually cobble together a $1 billion debt relief package for Egypt, though he still ran into congressional opposition for an even more modest proposal: a $60 million economic “enterprise” fund to assist small businesses, akin to what was given to Eastern Europe after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Last year, the administration also offered up to $2 billion in financing through the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and reallocated about

The Washington Diplomat

March 2012

$500 million in existing funds toward the region. And that’s the key — old money versus new money. While Egypt, Tunisia and other nations have been offered loan guarantees, debt swaps and other inventive types of financing, most of the direct assistance has been reshuffled from existing aid accounts without any massive new influx of funds. Nonetheless, the Obama administration has recognized the scale of the challenge posed by the upheaval, Carothers says, even if the spending hasn’t yet matched it. “If you look at Obama’s May 19 speech,” he said, in reference to the president’s first response to the Arab Spring last year, “he had some very skinny chicken bones trying to hold together what was an ambitious policy framework for the region.” The administration is trying to put a little more meat on those bones this upcoming fiscal year. Obama recently announced a new $770 million Middle East and North Africa Incentive Fund in his 2013 budget to “provide incentives for long-term economic, political and trade reforms to countries in transition — and to countries prepared to make reforms proactively,” according to his budget plan, which notes that this new fund builds on other recently announced programs in the region. And U.S. administration officials insist the fund is just that — new. They say about $700 million has been carved out through various other budget tradeoffs to support democratic transitions in the region, especially because no new resources were specifically allocated for the surprising wave of protests in the fiscal 2011 budget. Yet the plan doesn’t offer any details as to how the money would be divided, although the administration says having a pot of money will allow it to better respond to rapidly unfolding events, without having to siphon funds away from other projects. “The idea is to have some flexibility to support everything from Tunisia [to] Egypt, and in areas where things are changing every day like in Syria,” Thomas Nides, deputy secretary for management and resources, told reporters at a press briefing.“The world is evolving as we see it, and we felt it was important to have a pool of money.”

Alternatives to Cash Money may talk, but that doesn’t mean Capitol Hill is listening. For one thing, there’s no guarantee the Middle East and North Africa Incentive Fund or any of Obama’s budget proposals will survive the congressional chopping block.And as impressive as nearly $800 million sounds, it’s a drop in the bucket compared to what’s needed to revive sclerotic Arab economies after decades of dictatorship (Iraq and Afghanistan alone receive nearly $5 billion apiece in the foreign affairs budget, compared to $770 million for the entire Arab world). At a recent salon hosted by the Institute for Education, Robert Hormats, the undersecretary of state for economic, energy and agricultural affairs, readily admitted that the days of blank checks are over. “Back then, during a crisis, you’d go to appropriations in Congress and get money,” he said of the post-Cold War era. “In the current environment … it’s a lot harder to get those kinds of resources because budgets are tight and attitudes among Americans and Congress are less [inclined] to give out foreign aid.” However, he emphasized that even without loosening the purse strings, the U.S. can wield a significant amount of influence through a number of innovative, hands-on initiatives. “The people will be looking for these new governments to deliver — and the U.S. can help here,” Hormats said at the Institute for Education roundtable, which was held at the Indonesian Embassy. One of the most urgent imperatives for all March 2012

Arab Spring nations is righting their economies, which have been teetering because of the sluggish world economy and as a byproduct of the unrest itself. Hormats, a longtime Goldman Sachs executive, says the United States can provide targeted technical assistance to nascent governments and encourage American companies to set up shop in Arab nations. “Some do need financial assistance and the U.S. is trying to provide help even with our limited resources,” he said, noting that some non-urgent aid slated for other countries might be redirected to Egypt, for example, while funding in the pipeline for long-term programs may get shifted to quick-impact projects. “Addressing the unemployment issue will be critical, but it’s not just about money. We must encourage the political conditions to make the economies grow,” Hormats argued. “Economic stability and economic progress creates the right environment for political stability and political progress,” he added. “So we’re trying to move in parallel [to] encourage countries to undertake reforms and also encourage American companies to go to Egypt, Tunisia, etc.” He cited programs targeting political reform, the rule of law and the role of women while also strengthening small- and mid-size businesses and alleviating youth unemployment. Hormats suggested other ideas like swapping U.S. loans currently denominated in dollars into Egyptian pounds, saving Cairo some money without hugely impacting Washington’s bottom line. “We don’t have the luxury for going to Congress and just getting more money. We have to be creative.” Even small-scale exchange programs that offer basic education and business advice could benefit Egypt’s masses of unemployed youth. “We’re very good at networking, for instance, at enabling young entrepreneurs to have opportunities and the ability to innovate and to connect with one another,” Hormats said, adding that many of the protesters simply want “an opportunity to live like American kids.” Other analysts agree with Hormats that there is plenty the United States can do without inflating aid budgets. Michele Dunne, a former State Department official now with the Washington-based Atlantic Council, points out that even an endless supply of money would not eliminate all the problems confronting American or Arab policymakers. “I don’t think that showering [Arab nations] with cash is necessarily the wisest thing to do,” she told The Diplomat, noting that U.S. lawmakers “want to see real sensible economic policies in place, so that they don’t give hundreds of millions or billions that is then wasted.” However, she says the United States can play a valuable role as an organizer of funds from other sources, even if not acting as the primary generator.“There’s the leadership role the U.S. can take in working with other donors.We can have a multiplier effect,” she said. Such a tactic would also mimic U.S. strategy during the Cold War’s end. For instance, it was West Germany that, with U.S. support, financed the ongoing deployment of Soviet troops in East Germany because the Soviets were essentially bankrupt, and no one was eager to see several divisions of unpaid, well-armed troops operating on behalf of a collapsing regime at the bottom of an uncertain chain of command. Hormats too pointed out that the United States can coordinate economic and political advice through partnerships such as the G8, especially on issues such as corruption, a “corrosive” force in the Arab world.“Turkey is playing a constructive role, as is Poland and other countries who can serve as role models and advisors,” he noted.

Continued on next page

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Continued from previous page Dunne and Hormats also both cited the potential of international trade to buttress the region’s economies. And as the largest economy on the planet, budgetary constraints notwithstanding, the United States has a unique carrot with which to entice the emerging Arab governments. “The one change I would say would be coming up with a policy that will offer them much freer trade with the U.S. as a way to drive their economy going forward,” Dunne suggested.“Try to find a way to offer them negotiations on free trade agreements starting in the next couple of years.” “Most Arab Spring countries only represent a small portion of international trade outside of energy and they’re not really part of the world economy — this must change,” said Hormats, noting that he’d just met with the Egyptian trade minister in Washington to discuss ways to enhance Cairo’s exports and trade with the world.

New Leaders, Uncertain Landscape Hormats spoke at the Institute for Education public policy roundtable after having just returned from a trip to Egypt, where he joined a U.S. delegation that held unprecedented talks with the Muslim Brotherhood, which won a parliamentary majority in the country’s first democratic elections in decades. “A year ago, this would have been unimaginable,” Hormats said of the talks, describing them as “constructive.” He said the Brotherhood knows it needs to deliver to an impatient

remains a potent source of anti-American sentiment. Despite mutual distrust that sometimes boils over into hostility — as seen in Egypt’s criminal prosecution of the 19 Americans — Hormats counsels patience and says that none of the Arab Spring nations are going to emerge as pillars of Jeffersonian democracy overnight. “We have to have this sense of engagement. We’re learning and they’re learning,” he said. “And we can’t get too rattled if they do things we don’t like.This is a transition…. It will take a lot of time.” Indonesian Ambassador Dino Patti Djalal, who hosted Hormats at his embassy, echoed that sentiment, saying the United States and other nations “must let these new democracies make their own mistakes. They must strike a balance of when when to in give them and NOTE: Although every effort is made to assure your to adintervene is free ofand mistakes spelling ” content it is ultimately up to the space. customer to make the final proof. Hormats seized on the example of Indonesia, a Muslim-majority nation that overcame authoriThe first two faxed changes will be made at no cost to the advertiser, subsequent changes tarianismSigned and today hasare a booming economy, to will be billed at a rate of $75 per faxed alteration. ads considered approved. make his final point about America’s role in the Arab Spring: musttoultimately Please checkPhoto: this Mark anyChange changes your ad.come from USAID ad / Africomcarefully. Public Affairs within. Egyptian public and is looking for pragmatic USAID humanitarian supplies are unloaded at an “The bottom line is you can’t tell them what If theairport ad is correctonsign andtofax (301) 949-0065 needs changes governance models “that respect Islam but have in Tunisia, their way helpto: people fleeing to do. What you can do is help them look at a free democracy,” such as Turkey, Malaysia and the violence in Libya. things that have worked. But an excessive Indonesia.“They’re in a learning curve.” The Washington Diplomat (301) 933-3552 amount of foreign pressure will be counterproIndeed, U.S. engagement in and of itself sends dialogue because they did the best in the elec- ductive,” Hormats said. a strong message — and that includes tentation,” he__________________________________________________________ said, even if “we can’t predict how it “These revolutions are really about people Approved tively reaching out to Islamist groups that often will turn out.” willing to take on change by themselves,” he Changes ___________________________________________________________ have the strongest grassroots appeal and manCarothers agrees that U.S. policymakers added.“We can’t do for them what they can’t do ___________________________________________________________________ power. should not automatically fear the arrival of the or are unwilling to do for themselves.” Despite apprehension about working with Islamist parties. He adds that a genuine American such groups, Hormats argues that the West outreach would carry enormous symbolic value needs to recognize reality — and respect the for Arab citizens, who’ve long been suspicious Patrick Corcoran is a contributing writer winners of Egypt’s democratic vote. of U.S. intentions in the region, especially with for The Washington Diplomat. Anna Gawel is “It’s incumbent of us to sit down and have a regard to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which managing editor of The Washington Diplomat.

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March 2012

International Relations

Caribbean

Cuba Welcomes Pope, As U.S. Slams Door on Easing Embargo by Larry Luxner

ater this month, Cuba will celebrate a milestone in its history: On March 26, Pope Benedict XVI will fly from Mexico to Santiago de Cuba, kicking off a 48-hour whirlwind tour of the communist island. After saying Mass at the city’s Antonio Maceo Revolution Square, he’ll visit the cathedral of Cuba’s patron saint, La Virgen de la Caridad del Cobre, as part of celebrations marking the 400th anniversary of the discovery of the virgin’s image. The visit, which concludes with an outdoor Mass at Havana’s Plaza de la Revolución, will mark only the second papal tour to Cuba since the 1959 revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power. Yet one important anniversary isn’t being toasted at all — at least not on the streets of Havana. Fifty years ago, on Feb. 7, 1962, President John F. Kennedy expanded the partial embargo that had been imposed more than a year earlier by his predecessor, Dwight D. Eisenhower, into a total economic embargo against Cuba that endures to this day. That embargo, aimed at depriving the Castro regime of badly needed dollars, makes it impossible for average American tourists to frolic on the beaches of Varadero, only 90 miles due south of Key West, Fla. — even though U.S. law permits them to visit every other nation on Earth, including Syria, North Korea and Iran. “El bloqueo,” as the embargo is known in Spanish, is supported enthusiastically by hard-line Cuban-American exiles in South Florida and elsewhere. Yet it deprives most American businesses of some 11 million potential customers. It also prevents U.S. petroleum companies from doing exactly what their Chinese, Canadian, Venezuelan, Indian, Vietnamese and Norwegian counterparts are all doing right now: drilling in promising offshore Cuban waters in the Gulf of Mexico. “If this were 1962 and I told you all that it was more likely the United States would elect a black man president than lift the embargo against Cuba, I bet you’d have called me crazy,” said Ginger Thompson, Washington correspondent for the New York Times and the news-

March 2012

Photo: Larry Luxner

“

If this were 1962 and I told you all that it was more likely the United States would elect a black man president than lift the embargo against Cuba, I bet you’d have called me crazy. — Ginger Thompson

”

Washington correspondent for the New York Times

paper’s former bureau chief in Mexico City. “But here we are,” she said. “The Berlin Wall has come down, the Soviet Union has disappeared, and still we have the embargo in place. It remains almost as solid today as when it was established to break Fidel Castro’s hold on power.This is one of the most polarizing debates on Capitol Hill, and recent actions by the Obama administration [to relax Cuba-related travel and remittance regulations] have done little to please those on either side.” Thompson recently moderated a spirited debate between Colin Powell’s former chief of staff and a Cuban-born enemy of the Castro regime.The Jan. 18 faceoff, sponsored by the World Affairs Council of Washington, D.C., served as yet another reminder of how divisive the embargo remains, 50 years after its implementation. It featured embargo critic Col. Larry Wilkerson on one side, and Mike Gonzalez — who supports a hard-line

Cuba policy — on the other. For Gonzalez, vice president of communications at the Heritage Foundation, this debate is deeply personal. “I left Cuba at the age of 12, after my father died. I saw firsthand what it was like to live under that terrible regime. I remember how my teachers tried to get me to denounce my friends, my family and my church, which I didn’t do,” he said.“Cuba went from a first-rate economy to a barter economy. I remember how my father had to trade whiskey and cigarettes for milk for his kids. I made a career all over the world as a reporter to defend freedom for that reason.” Indeed, Gonzalez spent 20 years as a journalist, 15 of them covering Europe and Asia for the Wall Street Journal. He left journalism to join the Bush administration, eventually joining the Heritage Foundation, a Washington-based outfit that’s known for its deeply conservative views. “Communism didn’t work in Korea,

Tourists with dollars browse through trinkets at the flea market in Old Havana. The U.S. embargo, now 50 years old, makes it impossible for average American tourists to visit Cuba — even though U.S. law permits them to visit every other nation on Earth, including Syria, North Korea and Iran.

it didn’t work in Germany. What makes you think it’s going to produce wealth in Cuba?” he said.“The Cuban economy is in ruins today not because of the embargo, but because its socialist policies have failed.” Wilkerson, who just returned from a trip to Havana, is a visiting professor of government and public policy at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va. Before being appointed Powell’s chief of staff from 2002 to 2005 and associate director of the State Department’s Policy Planning Staff, he served 31 years in the Army. The problem today, he explained, is that Cuba policy isn’t a priority for an administration consumed with the war in Afghanistan, Iran’s nuclear aspirations and continuing economic strife. “People don’t care about Cuba, and you can’t blame them,” he said.“After all, we’ve got Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and a financial situation in this country that I think is as profound as the Great Depression. So it’s very difficult to get Americans’ attention about 11.5 million people living on an island 90 miles off the Florida Strait.” That’s even more so in a presidential

Continued on next page The Washington Diplomat Page 13

A propaganda billboard in Santiago de Cuba demands an end to the 50-year-old U.S. trade embargo, which is supported enthusiastically by hard-line Cuban-American exiles in South Florida, but deprives most American businesses of some 11 million potential customers.

Continued from previous page election year like 2012, said the retired colonel. “Karl Rove once told Colin Powell, ‘Don’t touch Cuba because we want Florida’s 27 electoral votes,’” he recalled. “Dick Cheney also knew our Cuba policy was idiotic, but even he knew that you don’t touch Cuba policy. The Obama administration is the first to get into the White House without the hard-line Cuban vote in Florida, so they have a little more flexibility with regard to that reality. However, it’s still a very difficult move for the Democrats to make.” Indeed, the Obama administration has moved cautiously with regard to Cuba policy. Like all presidents before him, Obama opposes lifting the embargo outright. Yet just over a year ago, the U.S.Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control relaxed rules that had been imposed seven years earlier by President George W. Bush to squeeze the Castro regime. The new rules allow “persons subject to the jurisdiction of the United States” to send up to $500 every three months, or $2,000 a year, to recipients in Cuba “to support the development of private businesses” in that country. They also remove all limits on CubanAmerican exile travel to Cuba; before, such people could travel to Cuba only once every three years and stay for only two weeks. “Thanks to President Obama’s decision to allow Cuban-American families to visit the island and send remittances as much as they want, Cubans have received over 400,000 visits and roughly $2 billion from relatives in the United States,” said Ted Piccone, a senior fellow and deputy director for foreign policy at the Brookings Institution. “These are proving to be important sources of currency and commerce that are helping families cope with reduced subsidies, and they breathe life into the burgeoning private sector.” Despite the limited opening, Cuba remains off-limits to regular tourists seeking sun and sand. It’s also one of only four countries still on the State Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism, along with Syria, Sudan and Iran. Even Iraq, Libya and North Korea have long since been removed from that hated list — and that’s absolutely ridiculous, says Wilkerson, a long-time critic of U.S. policy in Latin America. “Two different U.S. Coast Guard attachés attached to the U.S. Interests Section in Havana told me during this last trip that when it comes to terrorism, counter-narcotics and every other illicit activity, their relationship with the Cuban military is the best in the Caribbean, even better than with Mexico,” he said. “But our military wouldn’t like to publicize that because they feel like doing it on the sly will ultimately produce a more positive result than saying, ‘Hey, we’re working with the Cubans.’” Jorge Alberto Bolaños, chief of the Cuban Interests Section in Washington, has declined repeated requests for an interview since arriving in January 2008. But Carlos Alzugaray, Cuba’s former ambassador to the European Union and now a visiting professor at New York’s Queens College, is eager to talk. “I think getting Cuba off the State Department terrorist list depends to a great extent on the administration. They’re the ones who have to take this step. I don’t think politically it’s a major problem, though there’s going to be resistance from the Cuban-American right-wing Republicans,” he told The Diplomat. “No serious scholar believes Cuba is in any way linked to terrorism.” Maybe so, but Cuba’s critics aren’t buying into the notion that the Castro brothers have nothing to do with the terrorists of the world. “Col. Wilkerson wasn’t the only foreigner [in Cuba] last week,” the Heritage Foundation’s Gonzalez retorted.“Iran’s MahmoudAhmadinejad was there too — and not to go to the beach, and not as many middle-age European men do, to

Page 14

seek sexual favors with young Cuban women. The organizing principle of the Cuban regime is anti-Americanism, the same which Ahmadinejad supports in Tehran. And that regime will be a very willing accomplice to any state or individual who means to do us harm.” And despite the hopeful economic reforms ushered in by Raúl Castro, who formally took over for his older brother Fidel in 2008, “the dirty little secret about Raúl Castro is that he has unleashed a wave of violence and repression in the last six months,” argues Gonzalez.“Damas de Blanco [Ladies in White] is a group of defenseless women who try to march to church on Sundays, but they are beaten by goons bussed in by the regime. Two months ago, outside Cuba’s holiest shrine in Santiago de Cuba, a mob stripped them to the waist and dragged them through the streets.” According to Havana human rights activist Elizardo Sanchez, the Castro regime also arrested 4,123 people for political reasons in 2011 — an average of 11 a day. At the same time, Raúl Castro has embarked on a series of dramatic economic reforms aimed at improving the lives of average Cubans and introducing a nascent private sector while keeping discontent to a minimum. The first major change was a new urban law approved by Cuba’s Communist Party late last year that allows ordinary Cubans to buy and sell houses for the first time since the revolution. That law imposes few legal requirements and forbids state interference in fixing prices, opening up a potentially huge local real estate market. Then came something even more extraordinary: a decree that lets farmers sell their commodities freely and directly, without any state meddling, to state businesses and services, including hotels and restaurants.This represents a deadly blow to Acopio, the government’s hated fixed-price, forced-procurement system. More recently, Cuba’s banking system was revamped to offer new services to private farmers, cooperatives, the self-employed sector, small businesses, individuals and all other players in the “non-state” or private sector. To date, more than 350,000 Cubans are now classified as “cuentapropistas” or self-employed. But Cuba can’t do it alone, argues Richard E. Feinberg, professor of international politics at the University of California-San Diego. To really be economically successful, it needs help from international financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. “Cuba today is increasingly globalized. It’s

engaged with many developed, capitalist economies and emerging market economies.And most interestingly, there are some indications Cuba is now ready to engage with IFIs [international financial institutions] under certain circumstances,” said Feinberg, speaking at a recent Brookings conference. He noted that 187 countries belong to the IMF and World Bank — literally every nation on Earth (not including microstates like Andorra, Monaco, Liechtenstein and San Marino) except for Cuba and North Korea. “Now is the time for the international development community to engage in Cuba, to support the incipient economic reform process. Let’s be a part of history in the making. It’s time the IFIs complete their historic goal of full universality,” he said, noting that North Korea will one day be reunited with South Korea, and hence will be absorbed into a state that’s already a member of the IMF. “That makes Cuba the only full country left out,” he said.“IFI engagement with Cuba should begin with technical assistance prior to membership, and the IFIs should beef up their expertise on Cuba.” Meanwhile, to accommodate increased U.S. travel to Cuba — as well as trips by students, researchers, journalists, humanitarian groups and other licensed travelers — the White House has drastically expanded the number of U.S. airports allowed to offer direct charter service to Cuba to more than a dozen. Besides Baltimore Washington International Airport, these include Atlanta, Chicago, Fort Lauderdale, Houston, New Orleans, Pittsburgh and Tampa, among others. Until last year, such charter flights could originate only from Miami, New York or Los Angeles. Last month, the first charter flight to Cuba took off from Houston’s Bush Intercontinental Airport, carrying 80 passengers — mostly business people authorized to connect with professionals in Cuba. Similar service had been scheduled to begin March 21 from BWI to Havana — which would have linked the D.C. area with Cuba’s capital by regular air service for the first time in history — but William Hauf, president of Island Travel & Tours, said he’s been forced to postpone such flights until the fall. “We were premature in establishing the date of March 21, because the demand for these flights has not yet reached a level where they can be self-supporting,” said Hauf, noting that only three tickets had been sold as of Feb. 15. Each round-trip ticket costs $895 (the Cuban airport landing fee alone is $194 per passenger), making it slightly more expensive than flying to

London and back. “It’s going to take some time to mature to the point where the community is fully aware of these flights,” Hauf said, adding that at $895 a ticket, at least 80 seats must be sold just to break even. “The plane itself costs $50,000, and that combined with airport taxes, landing fees and commissions to be paid to the travel service providers bring the total costs over Photos Larry lUxner $70,000,” he explained.“This is a very expensive operation, and we don’t want to happen to us what we’ve seen with other cities, where they started prematurely and demand didn’t grow.” Charter airlines have already been forced to scale back Cuba-bound flights from Chicago, New York’s JFK, Atlanta and San Juan, Puerto Rico, after the demand was just not there. At present, Miami offers 60 flights a week to Cuba; in second place is Tampa, with four flights a week. In fact, demand out of Tampa has been so high that airlines reportedly have had to stagger the number of passengers per flight to make room for all the gifts and baggage they’re taking with them to Cuba. To that end, Hauf remains hopeful.“We’ve gotten calls from diplomats, the State Department, high schools, music teachers, colleges and universities,” he said. “This is a long-term market, with gradual growth to get up to the number of passengers that will create a breakeven point.” However, if Mitt Romney wins the White House in November, entrepreneurs like Hauf may find themselves out of luck. Romney has come a long way since 2008, when he offended Cuban-American exiles in Miami by ending his campaign speech with “¡Patria o muerte, venceremos!” — Fidel Castro’s traditional signoff. Exit polls showed Romney the clear favorite among Cuban-Americans who voted in Florida’s Jan. 31 Republican presidential primary. He won Miami-Dade County, home to many Cuban Americans, by a 2-to-1 margin over his rival, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Romney’s decisive win in Florida — a big improvement over four years ago, when he came in second to Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) — is the result of better advice on how to win the votes of Cuban American conservative voters. Romney’s top advisors are among the embargo’s fiercest defenders. These include Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee) and Mario Diaz-Balart, both Cuban American Republicans representing heavily Hispanic districts in South Florida. Diaz-Balart, who did not support Romney in the 2008 presidential race, now says the former Massachusetts governor is “super solid” among the exile community. “He clearly understands that appeasing state sponsors of terrorism is a recipe for disaster, [and] he has a very strong position on denying hard currency to the regime.” Romney’s views on Cuba are important because — although he’s dogged by several GOP

The Washington Diplomat

See Cuba, page 16 March 2012

COVER PROFILE

Ambassador Guðmundur Árni Stefánsson

Iceland’s Busted Economy Slowly Puts Back the Pieces by Larry Luxner

hy is Greenland called Greenland and Iceland called Iceland — especially when tiny Iceland is relatively green but gigantic Greenland is 80 percent ice?

Guðmundur Árni Stefánsson, Iceland’s new ambassador in Washington, is ready with an answer to this age-old riddle. “The fact is, the first settlers came to Iceland in 874 A.D., but then tried to sail further west and north,” he explained, pointing to an antique map of the North Atlantic on his office wall.“One of them, the father of Leif Eriksson [an explorer regarded as the first European to land in North America], discovered Greenland. He came back and told Iceland’s inhabitants, ‘I’ve located this beautiful country north of us, and it’s completely green.’ He was our first PR man. He was, of course, lying.” That same sort of snow job could also explain how Iceland’s 317,000 citizens came to believe — even as world financial markets edged closer and closer to chaos in 2008 — that their country’s bloated banks would never fail, and that Iceland’s per-capita income of $39,700 a year, already the 11th highest in the world, would just keep heating up. This mentality allowed these modern-day Vikings to drive expensive Range Rovers and generally live way beyond their means. When Iceland’s house of cards finally collapsed, the nation — and Europe — was in for an ice-cold shower. The national currency, the króna, lost more than half its value against the euro, inflation jumped to 18.6 percent, and thousands of citizens — many of them suddenly jobless— marched on Iceland’s parliament, the Althingi. Relative to the size of its fishing, energy and tourism-based economy, Iceland’s financial crisis made history as the largest ever suffered by any nation. “Our people say the banks should have seen it coming and should have prepared them for the crisis. Bankers told them until the final day that everything was hunky-dory,” the ambassador complained. “Why didn’t they do something when they saw what was happening in other countries? That’s the million-dollar question, and still is.” Despite its wealth, Iceland — whose population is only one-thousandth that of the United States — has always lived in the shadows of its much larger Scandinavian neighbors. Once united with Norway, the Kentucky-size island was a Danish territory until 1944, and its Georgetown embassy is located inside the House of Sweden on K Street. Fittingly, Stefánsson was Iceland’s ambassador in Stockholm for six years before coming to Washington last October. (In his younger days, the 56-year-old diplomat also worked as a Reykjavik police officer, journalist at the weekly newspaper Helgarpósturinn and radio producer at the Icelandic State Broadcasting Service.) Stefánsson was born and raised in Iceland’s thirdMarch 2012

“

Photo: Larry Luxner

Our people say the banks should have seen it coming and should have prepared them for the crisis. Bankers told them until the final day that everything was hunky-dory…. Why didn’t they do something when they saw what was happening in other countries? That’s the million-dollar question, and still is.

”

— Guðmundur Árni Stefánsson ambassador of Iceland to the United States

largest city, Hafnarfjördur, whose 26,000 inhabitants put it roughly on par with Herndon, Va. In 1986, he became mayor of Hafnafjörtur, eventually becoming active in the center-left Social Democratic Party, which along with the Left Green Party now maintains a narrow majority in parliament. The ambassador is proud to point out that Iceland’s Althingi is one of the world’s oldest parliaments, having been established by the Vikings in the year 930. “The reason I quit politics after 15 years is that for 10 of those years, I was in the opposition.That’s a very long time,” he told The Washington Diplomat, noting that Iceland’s current foreign minister was chairman of the Independence Party, and therefore his political opponent. “So I said to myself, why not take the next step? And I think I made the right decision.” It’s probably not a great time to be a politician in Iceland anyway.

Even though the country is clearly recovering, with per-capita GDP at just over $38,000 last year, Stefánsson said people are still furious about Iceland’s economic meltdown and the events that led up to it. “In the decade leading up to the crash, Iceland transformed itself from an economy fueled by fishermen to a center for wealthy financiers,” Washington Post correspondent Brady Dennis reported from Reykjavik in mid-January. “It privatized its banks, and they grew larger and larger, gobbling up assets around the globe and luring thousands of overseas depositors with promises of high interest rates. Businessmen came and went from Reykjavik in private jets. They bought showy yachts and multimillion-dollar vacation homes. Bankers became a popular and swaggering breed; after all, they were handing out a slew of high-paying jobs and providing a fortune in tax revenue…. An air of invincibility set in, a sense that Icelanders had mastered a powerful form of financial alchemy.” But once the global credit markets began to freeze in mid-2008, investors demanded their money back. By then, Iceland’s three largest banks had accumulated assets of 14.437 trillion krónur (about $209 billion) — 11 times the country’s 2007 GDP of 1.293 trillion krónur. “It was impossible for Icelandic authorities to save the banks, so we just let them go,” said Stefánsson.“The government said from the beginning that we’d secure the savings accounts of Icelanders who had money in the banks, but many others lost heavily. The banks went into bankruptcy and we have been selling their assets ever since.” The ambassador added that “in reality, they never closed. Now the government owns Landsbanki, and the two others are owned by the debtors.We also borrowed money from our Nordic friends because there was a lack of foreign currency.They backed us up in a friendly and efficient manner.” Yet other neighbors didn’t exactly react in a friendly

Continued on next page The Washington Diplomat Page 15

Continued from previous page manner — namely the British and Dutch, whose governments demanded that Iceland repay the roughly $5.8 billion that their depositors lost when Landsbanki went under. The Icelandic government initially agreed, but when the issue was put to a referendum, taxpayers refused to foot the bill for foreign creditors — which would’ve entailed relinquishing an amount roughly equal to half the country’s GDP. The voters’ rebuke remains a sore spot in Iceland’s relations with Britain and the Netherlands, yet Reykjavik’s success in averting a protracted economic calamity is undeniable — and, according to the ambassador, shows that governments should let failing lenders go bust and protect their citizens instead. Financial experts have generally agreed. “The lesson that could be learned from Iceland’s way of handling its crisis is that it is important to shield taxpayers and government finances from bearing the cost of a financial crisis to the extent possible,” Islandsbanki analyst Jon Bjarki Bentsson told the French news agency AFP. “Even if our way of dealing with the crisis was not by choice but due to the inability of the government to support the banks back in 2008 due to their size relative to the economy, this has turned out relatively well for us.” Arni Pall Arnason, 44, Iceland’s minister of economic affairs, told Bloomberg news recently that the decision to make debt holders share the pain saved Iceland’s future. “If we’d guaranteed all the banks’ liabilities,” he said, “we’d be in the same situation as Ireland.” Nobel Prize-winning U.S. economist Paul Krugman echoes that sentiment. “Where everyone else bailed out the bankers and made the public pay the price, Iceland let the banks go bust and actually expanded its social safety net,”

Photo: Robert Walzer

Krugman wrote in a recent commentary in the New York Times. “Where everyone else was fixated on trying to placate international investors, Iceland imposed temporary controls on the movement of capital to give itself room to maneuver.” And Iceland had more room to maneuver than other larger economies. Because its currency wasn’t tied to the eurozone, the government could allow the value of the króna to drop. As a result, exports went up, as did tourism thanks to cheaper prices. Capital controls kept money from leaving the island. And Iceland received loans not only from Nordic countries, but also the International Monetary Fund, completing an IMF program last summer. “The IMF here in Washington says Iceland is a textbook example of how their program works

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call (301) 933-3552.

Visitors tour Iceland’s geothermal wonders in a stretch of mountainous lava desert several miles outside Reykjavik. Iceland’s economy is gradually bouncing back from its collapse in 2008 in part because the value of its currency dropped, making the scenic country more affordable to tourists.

in reality,” said Stefánsson.“The basic thing about Iceland is our island mentality. Throughout the decades, we’ve had our ups and downs, and being a fishing nation, we know we can’t count on anything. Fish come and fish go. So we’re well-prepared for the bad years, always hoping for better times.” Icelanders are also well educated and quite young compared with other European nations, he noted. “The fact is, we’re a small nation, so when we need to tackle issues, you don’t have to go through many layers. That’s why we go down very rapidly, but up very quickly as well. And we didn’t owe a lot of money compared to Greece, which is heavily indebted. The most hurtful

from page 14

Cuba rivals — conventional wisdom says he’ll eventually become the Republican nominee for the White House. It’s also likely he would select GOP Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, a Cuban American and strong supporter of Cuba sanctions, as his running mate. If Romney wins the nomination and goes on to defeat Obama in the November presidential election, Romney has vowed to reinstate Bush-era restrictions on travel and remittances to Cuba that Obama abolished in 2009, and “strictly adhere” to the 1996 Helms-Burton Act, including Title III, “to place maximum pressure on the Cuban regime.” Title III allows Americans to sue people or companies who use Cuban property seized after Castro’s 1959 revolution. But no lawsuits have been filed because U.S. presidents consistently waive enforcement of Title III. Romney would also demand the immediate release of Alan Gross, a 62-year-old American arrested more than two years ago for distributing high-tech communications equipment in Cuba through a U.S. Agency for International Development “democracy building” program. In this regard, Romney is following in the footsteps of Obama, who has also demanded Gross’s immediate release. In January, the Cuban government announced it would release 2,900 prisoners, including 86 foreigners, ahead of Pope

thing is that we lost jobs. We are not used to unemployment, which is now almost 8 percent.” Still, that rate has been gradually falling, as has inflation, while investment and economic growth have been gaining steam.The opposite is happening in other troubled European Union nations such as Greece and Spain, which are tethered to the euro and lack monetary flexibility. And many economists such as Krugman credit the króna for Iceland’s recovery, warning against the notion that adopting the euro can protect against economic imbalances. Iceland doesn’t belong to the 17-member eurozone, or even the 27-member European Union. Rather, it’s a signatory to the European Economic Area, which allows Iceland — along with Norway and Liechtenstein — to participate in the EU’s internal market without conventional EU membership. In exchange, the three countries must adopt all EU legislation related to the single market, except laws on agriculture and fisheries. “In a sense, we are inside the EU but not formally in it,” the ambassador explained.“We don’t attend the decision-making process in Brussels, but in June 2009 we formally applied for membership, and we are in the process of negotiating a membership agreement.” A big sticking point remains fishing rights, which sparked Iceland’s so-called “cod wars” with Britain in the 1960s and 1970s. The result, said Stefánsson, was global recognition of Iceland’s 200-mile economic exclusion zone, which he says has worked to Iceland’s advantage, “along with a quota system in place that’s working fairly well.” Stefánsson says that today, about 60 percent of Iceland’s citizens oppose EU membership, while 40 percent support it. “Icelanders are afraid we would be swallowed up by Europe,” he said.“The government has promised we’d have a referendum when we conclude an agreement, probably at the beginning of next year. After that, we’d have to see how it goes.” Despite its lingering problems — debt, unem-

Benedict’s visit this spring. But Gross wasn’t one of them. Despite the pontiff’s short stay in Cuba, the trip has generated much excitement among Cubans both on the island as well as in the United States. “We think his visit will spread a message of hope, peace and moral values — in sharp contrast to what Cubans experience on a daily basis,” said Tony Jimenez, co-founder of a Miami-based student group known as Raíces de Esperanza (Roots of Hope). “It’s an opportunity for Catholics and others to see what’s really going on in Cuba.” In fact, many U.S. Catholic leaders plan to travel to Havana for the event. Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski will be conducting his own pilgrimage to Cuba during the pope’s visit there. Wenski told local media outlets that if the response merits, he’d like to book two charter flights to Cuba that week, with each jet holding up to 250 passengers. Non-Catholics have endorsed Wenski’s pilgrimage to Cuba. “The presence of the Holy Father will benefit all Cuban Christians regardless of denomination,” said Bishop Leo Frade of the Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida. “I welcome his visit and applaud Archbishop Wenski for his courage of accompanying the pope in Cuba and his desire for reconciliation among Cubans on both sides of the Straits of Florida.” Larry Luxner is news editor of The Washington Diplomat.

The Washington Diplomat

March 2012

ployment and residual anger remain high — Icelanders remain the happiest people on Earth, if the latest Capacent/Gallup poll is to be believed. The 2012 survey, released in January, showed that 73 percent of Icelanders report being satisfied with their lives, compared with 33 percent of North Americans, 25 percent of East Europeans and only 20 percent of Arabs. Besides being happy, Icelanders are also generous — and that generosity will likely continue even in the face of financial difficulties. In 2011, the country allocated 0.21 percent of its total budget to overseas development aid — down from 0.37 percent in 2008 — though parliament wants to increase such aid gradually over the next few years, aiming for a record 0.7 percent in 2019. Stefánsson said Iceland currently gets about 40 percent of its export revenues from fishing, while another 35 percent comes from the energy, aluminum and information technology sectors. Tourism brings in the remaining 25 percent. ugh every effort made assure your ad is To thatisend, the to ambassador is doing hisfree best of mistakes in spelling and ontent it is to thetocustomer to make to ultimately promote U.S.up tourism Iceland. Glossy color the final proof. PHOTO: ROBERT WALzER brochures and DVDs highlight the country’s the sky and disrupting air traffic over most of spectacular geysers, volcanoes, hot springs and axed changes will be made at no cost to the advertiser, subsequent changes northern Europeapproved. for days] also put our country while rave aboutSigned Reykjavik’s at a ratefjords, of $75 permagazines faxed alteration. ads are considered restaurants — featuring exotic seafood and lamb on the map, so to speak.” In fact, tourist arrivals by air jumped by 18 dishes — as well as the capital’s pulsating nightPlease check this ad carefully. Mark any changes to your ad. percent last year, when 540,000 foreigners life. It helps that Reykjavik is only a five-hour landed at Keflavik International Airport just outct sign and fax to: (301)from 949-0065 needs changes side the capital. Roughly 70,000 more arrived via direct flight Washington’s Dulles International Airport on Icelandair — and that cruise ship. Even more impressive was the jump devaluation (it’s now trading at 123 in U.S. tourists — from 52,000 in 2010 to 78,000 Diplomatthe króna’s(301) 933-3552 to the dollar) makes Iceland a better travel bar- last year. gain than it’s been in years. On Jan. 24, Stefánsson hosted a reception at ______________________________________________________ “For sure, that’s been very helpful for tourism. his residence marking the 70th anniversary of ______________________________________________________ Iceland is definitely not as expensive as before,” diplomatic relations between Iceland and the Stefánsson said. “And Eyjafallajökul volcano United States — a little premature, perhaps, since ______________________________________________________ [which erupted in 2010, spewing ash miles into Iceland has only been independent for 68 years.

The United States, which established an airfield at Keflavik in 1942, was the first country to recognize Iceland’s sovereignty.“After World War II, the base was kept and the Americans had a fairly large presence in Iceland until 2006,” the ambassador said. “So defense cooperation has been long-lasting, and that’s one of the reasons the two countries have a very close relationship.” In addition, the United States is home to 42,000 people of Icelandic descent, with the largest populations in North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Washington and Utah. “We have only 20 embassies throughout the world, so we count on our honorary consuls,” said Stefánsson. “Here in the States, we have 45 of them — mostly unpaid people who have some relationship with Iceland.” These consulates are spread across the far reaches of the United States, from Anchorage, Alaska, to San Juan, Puerto Rico — and they include places like Fort Lauderdale, Minneapolis, Phoenix and Seattle. Perhaps the most remote locale on the list is Mountain, N.D., a settlement of 92 people founded in 1884 by Icelandic immigrants. During a 2007 visit by then-Prime Minister Geir Haarde to this one-horse town about 20 miles south of the Canadian border, municipal officials told him of their plan to raise $1.3 million for a community center. The politician generously sent Mountain a check for $75,000. But that, of course, was before the big crash. These days, the once-admired Haarde huddles in a small office, one block from where he and his Independence Party once led Iceland. The Washington Post, calling him “the first world leader to face criminal charges related to the financial crisis,” notes that “he’s on trial for what he didn’t do, rather than for what he did.” Whether that’s fair or not is another matter, said Stefánsson, suggesting that it’s unjust to pin

Iceland’s economic collapse on one man alone. “Our parliament set up a truth commission after the crash, with a wide spectrum of people trying to figure out what really happened,” he said. “This commission said the current government wasn’t on top of it, that they should have been regulating, so a narrow majority decided to prosecute the former prime minister through a special prosecutor’s office, but this takes a lot of time. That’s one reason people are angry. They say it takes too long to get these people to acknowledge their mistakes, and that they have to pay for it. They say if they don’t have the money, they’ll have to go to jail.” Haarde, who has an economics degree from Brandeis University and a master’s from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, faces up to two years in prison. But whether he’ll actually serve time is doubtful, since the main charges against him have already been dropped, and a new proposal now before parliament seeks to dismiss the case altogether. “I guess my blame lies in the fact that we did not see it coming,” Haarde told the Post. If anything, said the disgraced former prime minister, he helped salvage Iceland’s economy by refusing to put taxpayers on the hook for rescuing the nation’s biggest banks, and by forcing foreign investors to swallow huge losses. But even if Haarde’s name is cleared, that doesn’t mean other officials will get off scot-free. The special prosecutor commands a 90-member team of police detectives, former bankers, auditors and economists that has publicly named more than 150 people, including former top banking officials, as suspected offenders. “Most probably,” said the ambassador,“some of them will end up behind bars.” Larry Luxner is news editor of The Washington Diplomat.

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Politics

United States

Tax Haven Next Door: Delaware Exposes Corporate Secrecy in Elections by Veronika Oleksyn

hat can you get done in five minutes? Take a quick coffee break. Check email. Start your own business. Start your own business?

If certain Internet ads are to be believed, that’s all the time it takes to set up a corporation or limited liability company in Delaware from the comfort of your own keyboard. But the minimal effort, coupled with fairly low fees, isn’t the only draw of such entities based in the tiny state just 90 minutes north of the nation’s capital. More important for many is the fact that they come with a degree of anonymity usually associated with bank accounts in Switzerland and other stereotypical offshore tax havens in the Caribbean and elsewhere. The 2012 U.S. election campaign has put the spotlight on the issue of secrecy in the First State of Delaware. Last spring, an anonymous $1 million donation to a super PAC (political action committee) supporting Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney came from a Delaware LLC that was dissolved four months after it was created — leaving little trace of who was behind it.The donor, a former managing director at Bain Capital, the private investment company Romney cofounded, came forward in August amid much media scrutiny. Comedy Central star Stephen Colbert, meanwhile, acquired his own Delaware company — called “Anonymous Shell Corporation” — to highlight how easily election campaign contributions can be camouflaged. Indeed, ever since the advent of PACs and super PACs, tracking the torrent of money in politics has become exceedingly difficult. For instance, while the super PAC American Crossroads, created by Republican strategist Karl Rove, is legally required to disclose its contributions and donors, its “sister” organization, American Cross roads GPS, isn’t under the same legal obligations because it is a 501(c)(4). However, as a nonprofit, Crossroads GPS can donate directly to super PACs, effectively hiding the identity of individual or corporate donors. Sound complicated? It is, and watchdog groups are working overtime to sort through this shadowy new system of unlimited campaign contributions in the wake of the Supreme Court’s controversial Citizens United decision. But there’s yet another layer that obscures the funding sources behind all those heated attack ads this political season: the ease with which businesses can be set up in Delaware and elsewhere — which has been the subject of debate for some time in large part because it requires no data on actual ownership on incorporation forms, just the name of a “communications” contact. However, the issue of anonymity extends far beyond Delaware’s borders to other U.S. states. A 2006 Government Accountability Office report, for example, found that most states do not require ownership information when businesses are formed or don’t have to submit periodic reports. Nevada and Wyoming are particularly popular places to incorporate. Agents based in

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Photo: Gary Lanier / istock

“

Right now, it takes more information to get a driver’s license or open a U.S. bank account than to form a U.S. corporation. — Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.)

”

those states advertise heavily on the web in an attempt to net customers. According to the Tax Justice Network, an independent organization that in 2009 deemed Delaware the most secretive financial jurisdiction in the world, about 2 million corporations and limited liability companies are formed in the United States each year without states asking for the identities of the owners. That’s also a statistic quoted by Sen. Carl Levin, a Democrat from Michigan. He has warned for years that the lack of details about who actually owns a particular company can facilitate corruption, money laundering and even terrorism. “Right now, it takes more information to get a driver’s license or open a U.S. bank account than to form a U.S. corporation,” Levin said in remarks published in the Congressional Record in August. That’s when he introduced legislation, together with Sen. Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, that would require states to obtain a list of the beneficial owners of corporations or LLCs formed under their laws and keep the information on file so it can be made available to law enforcement officials if need be. “Under current U.S. law, corporations can be established anonymously, by hidden owners who don’t reveal their identity,” Levin added. Rep. Carolyn Maloney, a Democrat from New York,

introduced a similar bill in the House of Representatives in November. Levin’s measure, the latest of several attempts, has been referred to the Senate’s Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, where it faces considerable opposition and an uncertain future. The American Bar Association, a group that represents about 400,000 lawyers and others in the legal profession, called the proposal “unjustified” and “counterproductive.” Not only would it be “extremely costly,” it also would undermine attorney-client privilege and traditional state court regulation of lawyers, ABA President Bill Robinson III wrote in a Dec. 16 letter to the heads of the committee. Meanwhile, the National Association of Secretaries of States argues that Congress should focus on tracking corporate entity ownership information through federal tax filings instead of asking states to do the job. In a statement, it said the vast majority of new companies formed in the United States each year are created for legitimate reasons and “serve as the backbone of our state and national economies.” “Why would we make this process more expensive and complex during a major recession, when other workable alternatives already exist?” the statement asked. Richard Geisenberger, Delaware’s assistant secretary of state and director of the Delaware Division of Corporations, agreed that tax authorities ought to be the go-to people for beneficial ownership data. But he also pointed to the role of banks, saying they serve as a net for tracking the flow of money and reporting suspicious activities, so they have an obligation to know their customers. “That act of creating an entity is not an act of money laundering. The act of money laundering is when you start moving dollars or euros or whatever,” he said.“And

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See Delaware, page 44 March 2012

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The Washington Diplomat Page 19

MEDICAL

Eye Disease

Stem Cells, Genetic Therapy Take Aim at Vision Loss by Gina Shaw

he retina is an essential component of your vision: It’s the layer of tissue in the back of your eye that senses light and sends images to your brain.

Nearly 2 million people in the United States alone have severely impaired vision due to diseases of the retina, many of which are progressive and have few treatment options. But what if you could generate your own new cornea or retina with just a few cells taken from your own skin? It sounds like science fiction, but recent advances in stem cell technology and ophthalmology make it something that could be happening at a leading hospital near you within the fairly near future. In January, the results of the world’s first human trial using embryonic stem cells to treat eye disease appeared in the Lancet.The trial, conducted by scientists at the Jules Stein Eye Institute at the University of California-Los Angeles and funded by California biotech firm Advanced Cell Technology, involved two female patients — an elderly woman with dry age-related macular degeneration, a leading cause of blindness in the United States, and a woman in her 50s with Stargardt disease. Both were considered blind. Embryonic stem cells had been coaxed to grow into retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), a highly specialized tissue whose malfunction is at the heart of many eye diseases. After injections of 50,000 new RPE cells into their diseased eyes, both women were doing well and the cells had attached to the eyes’ membranes as doctors had hoped, although it was still too soon to say how their vision would improve, if at all. Someone who had been waiting for the results of the trial is Dr. Stephen Tsang, assistant professor of ophthalmology, pathology and cell biology at Columbia University Medical Center in New York. Creating patient-specific cell lines that can be used to treat eye disease is one of Tsang’s primary research goals. Tsang has been doing research similar to Advanced Cell Technology and UCLA’s work, and he has also been able to coax embryonic stem cells to develop into RPE cells, or into corneal stem cells. “The technology is most advanced with corneal stem cells,” he said. “For people who have had a bad alkaline burn to the cornea or another trauma, we will soon be able to take stem cells from the good eye and help generate a new cornea for the other eye.” But what if the person’s eye damage comes from a disease, such as diabetic retinopathy? If the disease is part of the patient’s own genetic code, transplanting new corneal or retinal cells with the patient’s existing genetic programming could just reintroduce the same disease. In some cases, that would actually be fine. With a condition such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD), that might not even be so bad, says Dr. Lucian Del Priore, professor of clinical ophthalmology at Columbia and a noted researcher in the application of stem cell technology to eye disease. “Newly generated retinal cells should behave as if they are brand new, which should give the patient another 55 or so years before AMD sets in,” he explained. Other diseases, however, aren’t age-related. A condition called Leber’s congenital amaurosis, for example, is an inherited eye defect that appears early in life and causes severe loss of vision by childhood or late adolescence.

Page 20

Photo: Josh Banks / Banks Photos

“

For people who have had a bad alkaline burn to the cornea or another trauma, we will soon be able to take stem cells from the good eye and help generate a new cornea for the other eye. — Dr. Stephen Tsang

”

assistant professor of ophthalmology, pathology and cell biology at Columbia University Medical Center

“Transplanting newly generated cells with the exact same genetic defect would make very little difference,” said Del Priore. To use cell-based therapy for patients with such diseases, ophthalmologists will need to correct the “mistake” in the original genetic code. The early results from the UCLA trial, showing that this process can be done safely, are a promising first step. Tsang soon hopes to apply to the U.S Food and Drug Administration for a trial that would involve using human skin cells (rather than embryonic stem cells) to correct eye defects.“We would take stem cells from the skin of patients with the most severe macular degeneration, correct the genetic defect, and re-implant them,” he explains. But even before stem cell therapies becomes ready for prime time, personalized medicine and genetics are already being used to treat eye disease — allowing ophthalmologists to select the perfect drug for an individual patient, or to develop new drugs that target individual genetic mutations that cause eye disease. “At Columbia, we’re generating patient-specific cell lines

that allow us to test hundreds of new medications,” said Del Priore. “The ability to do this large-scale screening really lets us establish the efficacy of a drug across a wide range of patients.” Many patients with eye disease already receive a personalized genetic “prescription.” When patients come to the Edward S. Harkness Eye Institute at Columbia with certain genetically linked eye diseases, like age-related macular degeneration, they are screened to see if they have one of the known genetic mutations involved with that condition. “With AMD, for example, we now know of about 10 genes involved with susceptibility to that disease, and we know the variants in those genes that increase risk, so we can estimate the risk of certain patients for getting the disease and for disease progression,” said Rando Allikmets, research director of the Harkness Eye Institute. In most cases, gene defect-specific medications for eye diseases aren’t yet available, but that, too, may soon be changing for many conditions. For example, scientists screening hundreds of drug targets for a possible treatment for retinitis pigmentosa — a group of inherited eye diseases involving retinal degeneration — recently found that retinal cells with a specific type of degeneration survived longer in laboratory culture if the culture contained an anti-seizure medication called valproic acid. A small study in patients with retinitis pigmentosa then showed that their eye degeneration slowed down when they started taking valproic acid. Now, the treatment is being tested in a larger phase II clinical trial with about 90 patients, which is still recruiting. Whether it’s stem cell therapy or new, patient-specific medications (or old medications used for new purposes), genetic and cellular technologies have the potential to slow down, improve or even reverse hundreds of thousands of cases of vision loss every year.

Gina Shaw is the medical writer for The Washington Diplomat.

The Washington Diplomat

March 2012

LIVING L U X U R Y

■ A Special Section of The Washington Diplomat

■ March 2012

& ADAMS MORGAN

GEorGE

TOWN

story and photos by Dave Seminara

Two of Washington’s Best-Established Enclaves Also Two of Its Most Eclectic

Two of Washington’s most iconic, distinctive neighborhoods also couldn’t be any more different from one another, though they share an enduring appeal that continues to evolve and redefine D.C living. On one side, couples browse posh furniture boutiques for antiques or stroll along canal paths on lazy Saturday afternoons. Several blocks — and a world — away, thumping dive bars and immigrant-owned eateries attract hipsters on raucous Saturday nights. But these scenes only speak to one side of these multifaceted, well-established yet surprisingly eclectic neighborhoods.

Continued on next page

LUXURY LIVING March 2012

The Washington Diplomat Page 21

Continued from previous page

Venerable D.C. Institution A woman in a fur coat, holding a Yorkshire terrier in one hand, and a large, ornate picture frame in the other, stands frozen on a Georgetown street corner, wondering how to answer her ringing mobile. Around the corner on Wisconsin Avenue, a young NOTE: Although every effort is made to assure your ad is free of mistakes in spelling and woman steps out content of anit isAudi SUV to scrutinize some “totally real” Prada purses, sold by ultimately up to the customer to make the final proof. an African The immigrant for the very unreal price of $20. And just south of M Street, a first two faxed changes will be made at no cost to the advertiser, subsequent changes will be billed at a rate ofshares $75 per faxed alteration. are considered approved. French-speaking couple a $4 chaiSigned teaadslatte cupcake, as a line of people waiting check this ad carefully. Mark any your ad. for the chance Please to buy handmade goodies atchanges Bakedto and Wired stretches out the door. These are scenes from a to:Saturday afternoon in Georgetown, a neighborhood that is If the ad is correct sign and fax (301) 949-0065 needs changes older than the cityDiplomat to which belongs. Founded as a tobacco port by two not-soThe Washington (301)it933-3552 humble merchants named George in 1751, nearly four decades before Washington Approved __________________________________________________________ Changes ___________________________________________________________ became the nation’s capital, Georgetown has long had its own identity. ___________________________________________________________________

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The town grew up around a tobacco warehouse on the Potomac River and by the late 18th century was one of the leading seaports on the East Coast. George Washington and Pierre Charles L’Enfant, the French-born architect who was commissioned to design the capital, are said to have discussed plans to convince farmers on the other side of Rock Creek to sell their land over drinks at Suter’s Tavern, near what is now the intersection of K and 31st Streets. “Georgetown was an independent town, completely surrounded by the federal city, until they were finally annexed in 1871,” said Ronald Johnson, a history professor at Georgetown University who has taught courses on the history of Washington and Georgetown. “They fought to keep their autonomy but by that point Georgetown was already in decline.” Johnson says that Georgetown’s golden age stretched from about 1790 to 1830. If you take a short, but steep walk north of M Street along P and N Streets, you’ll see some of the stately “federal” style homes, named after the Federalist political party that were built during this time period. Prior to the Civil War, Georgetown had a substantial population of free blacks and slaves, and by 1900, it was about 40 percent African American, with pockets of poverty around small islands of prosperity. Gentrification of the neighborhood arrived, oddly enough, during the Great Depression. “The federal government grew so fast during this period that there was such a shortage of homes,” Johnson said. “Government workers moved into homes in Georgetown

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Neighborhoods and other areas, and displaced a lot of the impoverished black residents.” Georgetown has long been home to the city’s elite. Thomas Jefferson is said to have lived there for a spell; Ulysses S. Grant kept a summer home on Reservoir Road, and John F. Kennedy lived in the neighborhood for years prior to becoming president. Walk over to 3307 N Street and you can see the stately red-brick home where JFK announced many of his cabinet appointments after his election in 1960. In fact, in just a short walk you can check out the exterior of many of the Georgetown homes that JFK and Jackie Kennedy lived in (for a complete list of the addresses and ideas for Georgetown walking tours visit: www. georgetowndc.com/explore/georgetown_history/). With its distinctive architecture and proximity to downtown, the neighborhood’s charms and cachet don’t come cheap. There are currently 41 Georgetown homes for sale priced at $2 million or more, with the priciest being a seven-bedroom, 10-bath estate on Foxhall Road priced to move at $11.9 million. Last summer, Ryuji Ueno and Sachiko Kuno, the founders of Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, paid $22 million for Evermay, a circa 1794 estate built at what is now 1623 28th Street by Samuel Davidson, a Scot who got rich by selling the land around what is today the White House to the federal government. You can catch a glimpse of the mansion by visiting the site, but its high walls afford just a preview of its grandeur. (Ueno and Kuno, married biotech entrepreneurs, also later purchased nearby Halcyon House for $11 million, making them a quiet but forceful new presence in Georgetown.) Visitors will notice plenty of Range Rovers and men in expensive-looking blazers in Georgetown, but you certainly don’t need to be a millionaire to enjoy this leafy, expansive corner of D.C. Start at the new Georgetown Waterfront Park, along the Potomac, and then work your way north, stopping for a walk along the C&O Canal path, before heading uphill to enjoy the quiet splendor of cobblestone residential streets like N, P and O. Amidst the multimillion-dollar row houses, you’ll also notice some apartment buildings and homes in states of gradual decay.The neighborhood is also home to

Georgetown’s charming cobblestone streets and federal-style architecture don’t come cheap: There are currently 41 homes up for sale in the historic neighborhood priced at $2 million or more.

a large student population, thanks to the presence of Georgetown University, a Jesuit institution of learning founded in 1789. Stroll the neatly manicured grounds and be sure not to miss the Gothic-inspired Healy Hall and the Old North building, which was completed in 1872. The university’s distinguished alumni include King Abdullah II of Jordan, the current heads of state in Lithuania, Bosnia and Costa Rica, as well as former President Bill Clinton, who attended the school’s highly regarded Edmund A.Walsh School of Foreign Service, a training ground for future diplomats and government leaders. (Clinton ran for student body president as a junior but lost the election.) If you want to have a drink at what is said to have been Clinton’s favorite watering hole during his student days, stop in at The Tombs, on 36th Street just adjacent

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Founded as a tobacco port in 1751, nearly four decades before Washington became the nation’s capital, Georgetown is actually is older than the city to which it belongs.

to the campus. Espionage buffs might want to raise a glass at Chadwicks, the low-key K Street hangout where CIA mole Aldrich Ames once handed over shopping bags full of secrets to his KGB handlers. Other beloved Georgetown institutions include Filomena Ristorante, Blues Alley, Kafe Leopold, Clyde’s, Moby Dick House of Kabob, and Booeymonger, one of the city’s better hole-in-the-wall delis. Georgetown has also long been a magnet for shoppers, though critics argue that high rents have forced out small businesses at the expense of national chains. But James Bracco, executive director of the Georgetown Business Improvement District, rejects the notion that Georgetown has become a soulless outdoor shopping mall. “The reality is that M Street has the highest foot traffic and the highest rents, but look around the rest of the neighborhood and you’ll see that only 25 to 30 percent of our stores are chains; the rest are small, boutique, independent operators,” he said. Two of those are the neighborhood’s most reviewed businesses on Yelp, a popular user review site, and both are cupcake related: Georgetown Cupcake has a whopping 1,061 reviews, while Baked and Wired has 775. The two sisters who founded Georgetown Cupcake now even have their own show on TLC called DC Cupcakes, for those who aren’t content to simply eat cupcakes and want to watch them on TV too.

“You have gentrification but the reason why people move here is they want to live in a place that is diverse, so they’ve kept the soul of the neighborhood alive.”

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The Washington Diplomat Page 25

Continued from previous page heading over to Madam’s Organ, an old school bar and local landmark, for a drink and some live music (the mural of the redheaded, big-busted Madam is hard to miss) or check out Tryst, a coffeehouse/bar/ lounge that features a terrific selection of beers on tap and some first-rate coffee. Adams Morgan doesn’t have as many Ethiopian restaurants as it once did, but there are still some standouts. Try Mama Ayesha’s, and be sure to check out the colorful mural of Mama with likenesses of several U.S. presidents from Obama through Eisenhower. Amsterdam Falafelshop and Julia’s Empanadas are budget favorites on the dining front, while Cashion’s Eat Place and Perrys are good choices on the fine dining front. Bill Duggan opened Madam’s Organ in the neighborhood 20 years ago, and says that the essence of this thriving hotspot hasn’t changed. “The neighborhood has changed but the soul of it has stayed the same,” he said. “You have gentrification but the reason why people move here is they want to live in a place that is diverse, so they’ve kept the soul of the neighborhood alive.” Duggan believes that a visit to Adams Morgan is like one-stop-shopping for those who want to understand D.C.

Eye-catching murals, bohemian cafés and a bustling nightlife have turned the immigrant enclave of Adams Morgan into one of the most popular neighborhoods in D.C.

“You can come to one neighborhood and see the world,” he said. “With music, for example, you can hear American music, jazz, blues, bluegrass, Latin, and you can cross the street and hear African music, or go next door and hear Brazilian. Come into one neighborhood, walk up and down the street, and you get a taste of America and a taste of what Washington has become.” Dave Seminara is an award-winning freelance photojournalist and former diplomat based in Northern Virginia.

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■ MARCH 2012

Flower

Power

Maria Verónica Forsyth, the Chilean-born wife of the Peruvian ambassador, is a former yet reluctant Miss Chile who’s just fine staying in the shadows. PAGE 29

ART

Geometric Meditation New Delhi native Anil Revri finds faith and selfenlightenment through geometric patterns that hint at the divine, without overdoing religious dogma. PAGE 33

Although temperatures have been spring-like for months, the season is officially almost upon us, bringing the popular annual National Cherry Blossom Festival with it — and this year’s pink extravaganza will be bursting with pride because 2012 marks the 100th anniversary of Tokyo’s gift of 3,000 cherry trees to Washington. PAGE 28

PHOTOGRAPHY

Bonds of Battle Two vastly different exhibits reveal the common bonds of conflict, as men fight for their lives while also struggling through the idiosyncrasies of life at war. PAGE 31

DINING

FILM REVIEWS

Acacia Bistro and Wine Bar in Van Ness is easy to miss, but its steadfast success is hard to ignore. PAGE 34

Justice in modern-day Albania is guided by an ancient legal code that imprisons a family in Joshua Marston’s “The Forgiveness of Blood.” PAGE 36

[ events ]

Cherry Centennial Festival Celebrates 100th Year of Bridge-Building Pink Blossoms by Stephanie Kanowitz

lthough temperatures have been spring-like for months, officially the season is almost here, bringing the coveted annual National Cherry Blossom Festival with it — and this year’s popular pink extravaganza will really be bursting with pride. That’s because 2012 marks the centennial of Tokyo Mayor Yukio Ozaki’s gift of 3,000 cherry trees to Washington. Running March 20 to April 27, the festival celebrates not only the enduring legacy of that gift, but Japanese culture as well.To that end, as the tiny pink blossoms flourish around the D.C. metro region, so too will various art exhibits and events commemorating their 100th bloom in our area. Here is a look at four of them:

‘MASTERS OF MERCY’

[

Never before displayed outside Japan, Kano Kazunobu’s (1816-63) phantasmagoric paintings combine historical context with the religious beliefs of 19thcentury Edo (modern-day Tokyo). On view from March 10 to July 8, “Masters of Mercy: Buddha’s Amazing Disciples” at the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery will display 56 of the 100 paintings in a series that depicts the lives and deeds of Buddha’s legendary 500 disciples. Commissioned by the Pure Land Buddhist temple Zōjōji, Kazunobu began the series in 1854 and completed it in 1863. That timeframe is important, said James T. Ulak, senior curator of Japanese art, because a number of critical events took place then — among them: Commodore Matthew Perry, on behalf of U.S. President Millard Fillmore, demands that Japan open its borders to trade; an earthquake wrecks Tokyo in 1855; a sequence of cholera plagues and typhoons strikes; and the government falls apart. “The chaos of his real environment was incredible,” Ulak said. “There’s a painting where the Arhats [disciples] are rescuing people going down this torrential stream on the roofs of their houses — clearly a typhoon has hit. He’s seeing this.There’s a great immediacy and connection between this traditional vision and the politics and natural calamities of the day.” Arhats represent the religious origin of the series. Based on a Buddhist cult following, the Arhats are 500 disciples of Buddha who look like humans but have super powers — “sort of X-Men zipping through the world Masters of Mercy: saving things in the name of the Buddha’s Amazing Disciples Buddha, but also living lives like we live,” Ulak explained. March 10 to July 8 The result is larger-than-life Hokusai: Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji paintings — standing four feet by March 24 to June 17 10 feet, including their silk mountArthur M. Sackler Gallery ings — that are dynamic and tab1050 Independence Ave., SW loid yet pious, according to Ulak. Kazunobu “takes a traditional iconography and really For more information, please call (202) 633-1000 or visit www.asia.si.edu. embellishes it with the feelings of the day,” he said. The paintings, such as Scroll 22, show large, gnarly-yet-haloed men with long eyebrows battling evils such as fire-breathing dragons, while smaller, more earthly beings reach up in anguish for help. In another, the Arhats sit on clouds and lower ropes to villagers apparently drowning in a flood, a nod to the typhoons of the day. Other images, such as Scroll 50, are more peaceful, depicting the Arhats in repose among trees and moonlight. The exhibition will display the scrolls in rotations of 13 pairs at a time, Ulak said.

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‘THIRTY-SIx VIEWS OF MOuNT FujI’ A contemporary and neighbor of Kazunobu, Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) is one of Japan’s most famous artists, and his most acclaimed print series, “Hokusai: Thirty-six

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The Washington Diplomat

PHoTo: THE MAnn CollECTIon, HIGHlAnD PArK, IllInoIS

In honor of the cherry blossom centennial, the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery is presenting two major exhibitions of Japanese art from 19th-century Edo: “Masters of Mercy: Buddha’s Amazing Disciples,” featuring Kano Kazunobu’s painted scrolls such as “The Bath,” left, as well as “Hokusai: Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji,” including the print “Umezawa Manor in Sagami Province,” above.

Views of Mount Fuji,” will be on display from March 24 through June 17 at the Sackler Gallery. It includes 46 images, including recognizable pieces such as “Beneath the Wave Off Kanagawa,” better known as “The Great Wave,” and “South Wind at Clear Dawn,” better known as “Red Fuji.” First published between 1830 and 1832 and designed by Hokusai when he was in his 70s, the series changed Japanese art and publishing with its innovative techniques and focus.“It is probably the most important landscape print series in the history of Japanese prints,” said Ann Yonemura, senior associate curator of Japanese art at the Sackler. “It was the first major series to focus entirely on landscape and not on actors and courtesans and warriors.” She added:“For the anniversary of the gift of cherry trees to Washington, the 100th anniversary, we should focus on the artist who was the first major Japanese artist to be recognized Photo: ColleCtion: Zōjōji, tokyo, jaPan in the West.” The result is a collection of clear, vibrantly colored prints plus a rare version of “Red Fuji” dubbed “Pink For more information Fuji” because of its paler coloration. It’s the earliest on the national example of “Red Fuji” before it became a darker, deepCherry Blossom er, richer red,Yonemura said. Festival, please visit Mount Fuji was worshipped in Edo, where Hokusai www.nationalcherryblossomfestival.org. spent his life, and was considered to be sacred from very ancient times. “He was aspiring to understand nature and then to bring it to his paper through his brush,”Yonemura said. Mount Fuji is present in each image, sometimes in the foreground and sometimes barely noticeable, a nod to Hokusai’s use of perspective. It’s also indicative of his imagination, Yonemura said, because scholars don’t think the artist visited all the places from

to learn

See cHerry BloSSoMS, page 35 March 2012

[ diplomatic spouses ]

Beauty, Inside and Out Ex-Miss Chile Now Mrs. Peru and Happy-at-Home Mom by Gail Scott

lthough this diplomatic wife was a public figure early in her life, she has spent most of her time since then staying out of the spotlight and loving every moment behind the scenes. During 34 years of marriage to one of Washington’s most accomplished ambassadors, she has been a global “stay-at-home” mom raising three children on three continents while her husband’s impressive multiple careers in diplomacy, civil service, politics and journalism flourished. And although she can be the quintessential hostess, she is happiest wearing jeans and no makeup while cooking the family supper or tackling something around the house that needs fixing. María Verónica Forsyth — the striking but unpretentious Chilean-born wife of Peruvian Ambassador Harold Forsyth and a former yet reluctant “Miss Chile” — says her German heritage and upbringing “makes me very honest … and down to earth. I don’t get easily impressed.” “I was taught and I taught our children to be very modest, to never think they are the best in the world. You’ll go further in life that way and you’ll have problems if you think you’re the best. I always taught them that everybody is the same.” She adds:“Even if someone is a king or a queen, it’s the inside of the person that matters [to me], not the title or their power, or what they are wearing.” Her down-home philosophy seems to have worked.Today, daughter Desirée, 33, is a psychologist with the World Food Program in Rome.Their other two children, both boys, were born 13 months apart while the couple was posted in Venezuela. Harold Jr., now 30, is an industrial engineer with a master’s degree from the China Europe International Business School and is the father of their grandchild. George, 29, is one of Peru’s most famous soccer players as the goalkeeper for the Alianza Lima football club. “I get a little nervous because being the goalie is the worst place you can be,” his mother noted. “If the ball goes in, he gets all the blame and he’s been hurt so many times.” Her 9-year-old granddaughter and namesake,Maria-Verónica, is currently in town and attending Murch Elementary while her parents visit Washington. This 57-year-old grandmother could still easily pass for a model. As for entering beauty contests long ago, “My friends made me do it,” she explained. “I was shy in school … even my older sister Carmen insisted.” Now, decades later with adult children, she looks back over the family’s nomaddiplomatic life representing her I was taught and I taught our icadopted country of Peru in Bulgaria, Venezuela, Canada, Germany, Colombia, children to be very modest, to never Italy and, most recently, China, where think they are the best in the world. Harold Forsyth served as ambassador from 2009 to 2011. “I could go back to China today,” she You’ll go further in life that way and said enthusiastically, but she remembers you’ll have problems if you think how hard it was to leave her three children, by that point grown, behind in you’re the best. I always taught them Peru. “It was our first post alone,” she that everybody is the same. recalled. “And it was so far away. It felt strange. Like all Latin Americans, we keep — María Verónica Forsyth our children close and with us as long as we can. I think it felt worse because we wife of Peruvian Ambassador Harold Forsyth left them behind in Lima than if they had left us. Lima’s a big city with lots going on and they had parties every night so they were happy, but I’m like a hen with my chickens. I’ve always had my kids around and felt somehow that I had control of the situation over all of them. But you know, some day they have to go.That’s life.” But those two years in China flew by. “There is so much to see. The diplomatic community there is so close. I had wonderful friends there and I’m missing them. I

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March 2012

Photo: Gail Scott

María Verónica Forsyth, wife of the Peruvian ambassador and a former Miss Chile, has enjoyed being a stay-at-home mom to her three children, including Desirée, left. Although her children now live on their own, María Verónica’s granddaughter is temporarily staying with her at the Peruvian Residence in Washington.

always put down roots,” she said. “I loved Canada. When the kids were little, Ottawa was a great place for us, quiet and a family city,” she added, strolling down memory lane. “Everyone is very polite in Bogota and even when people have problems they are so strong, they always push forward,” she continued. “In Germany, I felt ‘almost German’ because I knew the language and knew not to do this and that, but I had become more flexible [coming from a Latin environment]. I love to enjoy life.” Here in Washington, she’s enjoyed staying at the Peruvian Residence with her granddaughter and Lucas, their 10-year-old beagle.The 25-acre hilltop estate bordering Rock Creek Park was once the site of a Civil War fortification and was chosen in the late 1920s by Washington builder Charles Hook Tompkins as the perfect spot to build his family home. Outside the gracious and meandering grey-stone house he built roam foxes, deer and other animals.“When we first came, we had five Bambis with little white spots. These are the same deer growing up. They feel secure here, away from the roads and the cars,” María Verónica said. “When we first heard we were coming to Washington, my son Harold logged onto the Internet and we saw an aerial view of this residence. It was all green around the house and I said, ‘We’re not going to just have a garden — we’re going to live in a forest. I love animals and the countryside.” During their Washington posting, María Verónica is also anxious to polish her English, meet new people, and find a good place to volunteer and help young cancer patients.

Continued on next page The Washington Diplomat Page 29

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“I volunteered in Lima. I loved my Wednesdays when I was at the [children’s cancer] hospital at 7 a.m.,” she said. “I played with the kids and read to them. Even when they had pain, they wanted to play.They knew everything about their treatment and chemotherapy and wanted to tell me all about it. I’d get sad and would be so tired at the end, but I always left feeling completely useful and fulfilled. We can learn so much from them.” Between foreign posts, the couple returns to Lima where her husband has been an active leader in and out of government, fighting authoritarianism and supporting democratic values for decades. In addition to his posting in China, Forsyth has served as ambassador to Turkey, Italy and Colombia, as well as permanent representative to the World Food Program and other agricultural organizations. In 2006, during the administration of President Alejandro Toledo, he was appointed secretary-general and vice minister of foreign affairs, one of the highest posts in Peruvian Civil Service. He was also a Peruvian congressman from 1996 to 2000, serving on the committees for defense, intelligence and foreign affairs, as well as an elections observer in Colombia, Mexico, Guatemala and Nicaragua. In addition, he’s been active in nongovernmental organizations as a founding member of the Democratic Forum and the Civil Association of Electoral Verification Transparency to help clean up Peru’s elections. A veteran journalist, Forsyth regularly contributes to Peruvian newspapers and other weekly publications. He has had several radio and TV programs specializing in politics, foreign policy and international relations, and he wrote a book on Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, the highly respected Peruvian diplomat who became U.N. secretary-general and Peru’s foreign minister during the tumultuous period from in 2000 and 2001 after President Alberto Fujimori resigned over corruption charges. Maria Verónica isn’t surprised by her husband’s varied achievements and positions — in fact, she sees no limits to his career imagination. “He’s completely an intellectual and he loves politics, but now I think he wants to become a film director! He loves movies so much.” Maria Verónica met her future husband after performing her dutues for a year as Miss Chile. “I was working in Santiago doing public relations for Gucci and there was this party at the home of the U.S. consul. I needed to talk with a friend who I knew would be there so I went, just to talk with her. When I arrived, she was talking with this young diplomat and I kept waiting for them to finish. They kept talking and talking. I needed to leave so I finally interrupted and she introduced us,” Maria Verónica recalled. “Right after I finished talking with her, I left. On the way home in the car, I thought someone was following me. Every turn I took, he took. Even when I took a shortcut, he took it also. I wondered what do I do? Keep driving around until I run out of gas? Or go home. When I got home, I stopped and he stopped. “I saw it was the same man I met at the party: Harold, the third secretary of the Peruvian Embassy.” They started dating and within the year were married. He was 26 and she was 23. Almost immediately after their wedding, the newlyweds left for his first diplomatic post outside South America, in Sofia, Bulgaria. “Our daughter Desirée was born there. Most diplomats went home to have a child but I stayed in Sofia. Why not? My family was in Chile and it was too far to travel,” Maria Verónica said.“I remember one thing that was very different. From the beginning of my pregnancy, I was always sent to the pediatrician’s

María Verónica Forsyth and her husband Harold Forsyth pose by the Great Wall in China, where he served as Peru’s ambassador prior to coming to Washington.

office. Not until my last few weeks, did I go to a gynecologist. The emphasis there is on the children.” Although the Forsyth children lived with their parents during those early years, their mother’s upbringing was completely different. As a young girl growing up on her family’s ranch several hours from Chile’s beautiful southern city of Valdivia, where many German families have settled, Maria Verónica went to a German boarding school at age 9, when she was only in third grade — the same age that her granddaughter is now. “That’s what we all did and then we would come home every weekend to be with our parents in the country. Since we didn’t have our mommy or our daddy around during the week, we learned to be more independent.We learned to take care of ourselves early and to be careful,” she said, noting that those early lessons in independence helped her as a young bride and mother far from home. Although “we grew up alone without our parents during the week … we had all the other boys and girls, living like one big German family,” she said of dormitory life.“It got harder when I was a teenager; then I realized what I was missing not being home.” Throughout our interview, Maria Verónica frequently referred to the interesting mixture of being raised in a German family and school in a Latin country. “My husband and our children used to call me the ‘German sergeant.’ Then I was promoted to the ‘German general.’ I always wanted everyone to clean their plates, eat all their food. My father had been very strict with us, especially at the dinner table, so that’s what I expected. “Germans like rules and keeping to schedule,” she added.“I don’t like to change things at the last minute. I can but I like things well done, sticking to a program, and doing things quietly with calmness.” Another gift she passed down to her children was a can-do spirit. “Everyone should have adventures,” she said. “I remember one time pushing them to cross this little river to the other side. I was urging them to jump onto the little island. Harold did and cut his foot but learned that he could do it. Kids have to hurt themselves and not get hysterical. You have to learn to take chances. Maybe that’s why George is such a good goalie.” Today, Maria Verónica travels on a diplomatic Peruvian passport but has kept her German dual citizenship. And while she has many German traits and fond Chilean memories, she says,“I love Peru — maybe even more than if I had been born there.” Gail Scott is a contributing writer for The Washington Diplomat and lifestyle columnist for the Diplomatic Pouch.

March 2012

[ photography ]

Connected by Combat Images from Civil war, Afghanistan evoke Universal Battle by Gary Tischler

hey are worlds apart, separated by time and space — one a distinct but distant relic of history, the other more immediate, but still somehow very far away. Yet here they are together at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, in two rooms, not even separated by a wall. Brothers in arms from different eras locked in a universal struggle that spans the ages. Whether their tools were gunpowder or laser-guided missiles, these warriors from the past and present are connected by combat and the cries of war, both real or imagined. It’s of course possible to separate “Shadows of History: Photographs of the Civil War from the Collection of Julia J. Norrell” from “Tim Hetherington: Sleeping Soldiers,” in spite of their proximity. The two concurrent exhibitions couldn’t be more different in how they look, how they were put together, and the kind of impressions they leave behind. The Civil War portraits, coming on the heels of the 150th anniversary of that epic conflict, look almost fictional, so removed in time and style from Tim Hetherington’s vibrant photographs and video installation, which looks like something we regularly encounter on the evening news. But all of the images show a nation at war and the common bonds of conflict, as men fight for their lives while also struggling through the strange idiosyncrasies of everyday life at war. The dual nature of the exhibits is even more poignant given that the photographs from the Norrell collection — which include early tintype, ambrotype and cartes-de-visite portraits, as well as rare images of African American regiments — are among the first to extensively document the PHoTo: CollECTIon oF JUlIA J. norrEll American Civil War, offering a visual essay that ranged from portraits of The civil War was one of the first soldiers and officers at rest, to the death and destruction of battle. conflicts to be extensively docuThe Civil War would hardly be the last conflict to engulf Americans, and today we see mented by photography, as seen in a slice of what life is like for soldiers fighting and toiling their way through a remote and pictures such as “ram,” part of dangerous outpost in Afghanistan, where Hetherington was embedded with a U.S.Army the “Shadows of War” exhibit at team from 2007 to 2008. the Corcoran Gallery of Art. right, The Civil War exhibit features 36 photographs by some of the most prominent phoSterling Jones practices his golf tographers of the day, including George Barnard, Matthew Brady,Alexander Gardner and swing while at the main Korengal Timothy H. O’Sullivan, culled from the Washington collection of Julia “Judy” Norrell, outpost (KoP) firebase in herself a Southerner by way of Arkansas.The exhibition also includes a powerful standAfghanistan’s Korengal Valley as alone installation by contemporary African American artist Whitfield Lovell: a large, lifechronicled by late photographer size construction of a black Union soldier. Tim Hetherington. The Hetherington exhibition has fewer works, but also includes an installation: a PHoTo: ESTATE oF TIM HETHErInGTon. © TIM HETHErInGTon, MAGnUM PHoToS short, continually rolling video with hyper sounds that include the screams of soldiers and the always-jolting rattle of automatic weapons — the type that would have done imaginations of artists like Winslow Homer or newspaper illustrators. But we can view catastrophic damage at the bridge at Antietam. the aftermath of battle, fields littered with bodies and death. These images have their You think thoughts like these going back and forth between the two exhibitions. place in history and serve as a reminder of the journey this nation took, and what it once “Shadows of History” is as quiet as a graveyard or ruin, and in fact includes shots of looked like, as blown-up homes and stark edifices (quite a few here) exist in a vacuum graves, ruins and scarred landscapes such as battlefields and military encampments.You of silence and immobility. could say that the work of Hetherington, an awardBut an odd thing happens when you walk into winning British-American photojournalist, writer and the “Shadows” exhibition.The noises from modernShadows of History: Photographs of the civil filmmaker, is also about encampment — his being day Afghanistan — the voices of soldiers and loud War from the collection of Julia J. norrell called Outpost Restrepo in the Korengal Valley, where pop of their weapons — energize the Civil War and he deployed with a group of Army soldiers from the room.The echo of gunfire lets you imagine the roar 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team. of cannons from the 1860s, the bellowing of horses, Tim Hetherington: Sleeping Soldiers From billowing tents and bloodied farmland in the terrified screams of soldiers in imminent danthrough May 6 Virginia to the craggy mountain-topped vertical spaces ger. corcoran Gallery of Art of Afghanistan, the places may be very different, but It’s then you realize that these two exhibitions 500 17th St., nW their function is the same: serving as a backdrop for are painful twins, kindred spirits and complemenFor more information, please call (202) 639-1700 fierce combat, bored repose and as a “home” where tary shadows of the experience of war. or visit www.corcoran.org. soldiers sleep between fearful waking hours. The saddest footnote that speaks to war’s merciHetherington’s photographs indeed feature soldiers less brutality is the death of Tim Hetherington, sleeping, as well as one swinging a golf club and men gathering behind their heavy whose Afghan video footage was featured in the Oscar-nominated documentary weaponry, bare-headed and buff, sometimes smiling and other times tense. The photos “Restrepo.” Hetherington, 40, was drawn to documenting conflict, chronicling the vioare by nature more precise and focused on a particular place and time, with an edgy lent power struggle in Liberia, Sudan and other hotspots. Four years after arriving in immediacy that Hetherington seems to share with his subjects, since his life too was in Afghanistan, he went to Misurata to cover the fighting in Libya, where he was killed by danger. mortar shells on April 20, 2011. The “Shadows of History” photographs are just that: shadows and ghosts.The technology of that time did not permit “action” photos, so re-enactments were left to the heated Gary Tischler is a contributing writer for The Washington Diplomat.

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March 2012

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The Washington Diplomat Page 31

[ theater ]

Me, Me, Me Colaizzo’s ‘really really’ Self-Absorbed Generation Goes Viral by lisa Troshinsky

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aul Downs Colaizzo’s clever and haunting premiere of “Really Really” at the Signature Theatre would likely be termed by one of the play’s 20-something characters as a “slow burn.” In the urban dictionary,“slow burn” is defined as: “to be stolen from slowly and intentionally, to have something valuable taken from you, little by little on the down low.” It’s not a good feeling, but one that’s hard to forget and happens to make great theater. At the tender age of 26, Colaizzo, Signature’s youngest playwright, has penned a social commentary that creeps up on you like a slowmoving disease. During the first act, it appears to be merely a common cold; by the end of the second act, it has turned viral. The script tries to decode the “me generation,” or what Colaizzo pontificates as the “postabortion” generation — i.e., they’ve become “the most wanted and most loved generation” because their parents had the option not to conceive them, Colaizzo explained to The Washington Diplomat.“Really Really deals with an entire cast of characters who will stop at PHoToS: SCoTT SUCHMAn / SIGnATUrE THEATrE nothing to win,” he said. In “really, really” at Signature Theatre, the party of the year turns into a Even those ubiquitous Apple smart phones lifetime of regret for a group of spoiled 20-something college kids played by, are called “I” phones,” notes one of Colaizzo’s above from left, Danny Gavigan, Paul James and Evan Casey, as well as characters. Bethany Anne lind (with Gavigan). “What this country is now dealing with is an entire generation of self-entitled people who think that he or she is the exception writer position for Broadway’s to any and every rule. It’s mixed with [TV’s] Mister Rogers’s teachings of the ’90s, “Sister Act” and a reading of his play which taught kids you’re special for just being you. That’s when we got into the “Pride in the Falls of Autrey Mill,” whole everyone deserves a trophy [mentality],” argues Colaizzo, who fully admits directed by David Schwimmer. this generation includes him, which is probably why he’s obsessed with under- “Really Really” was read at the standing its nuances. Kennedy Center’s Page-to-Stage His characters — annoyingly trendy, self-important and ambitious — use slang program and Matthew Gardiner, the like “gel” for “jealous” and “gay” for “undesirable” ad nauseam.We meet most of them director of the show at Signature, at the light and comical start of the play during the aftermath of a wildly reckless sent the script to Signature Artistic party given by rugby teammates. The morning after the party, the boys are full of Director Eric Schaeffer. superficial bravado about their exploits amidst their beer can-strewn apartment, Although he was at first increduwhile the girls are in their separate apartment nurs- lous when Schaeffer decided to ing hangovers. produce “Really Really,” Colaizzo really really What starts out to be banal hijinks among a group has already penned two more through March 25 of upper-crust college kids takes a menacing and scripts as a follow-up, which he Signature Theatre calculating turn that resembles the poignancy of an hopes Signature will take on.“Really 4200 Campbell Ave., Arlington, Va. Tickets Edward Albee creation. Accusations are made, alli- Really” is the first part of a “loose are $56 to $80. ances break down, and while the characters experi- dramatic trilogy,” Colaizzo said. “It is the ‘want’ play, as in I really, really want it; the note: Intended for mature audiences ence harmful consequences for their greed, the second is titled ‘Little Gives,’ about how this generation deals with what we give up, For more information, please call (703) 820-9771 audience’s respect for our current social climate and the third in the series is ‘Dog’s Tale,’ or the thing about getting.” or visit www.signature-theatre.org. nevertheless disintegrates. “In 2007, this was a play about an entire generation, but by the end of 2008 [after Colaizzo was inspired to write this play by a few the recession hit], this was a play about the truly resilient,” Colaizzo explained. “I events. One was a national scandal in the news a few years ago involving college write about the psychotomy in American contemporary life,” he added, referring to students accused of a crime; the other was the successful Broadway production what the urban dictionary defines as “a mental condition where a person’s person“Doubt,” an exploration of ambiguity and whether that ambiguity matters; and the ality seems to have been split into two opposite and distinct behavioral patterns third was Colaizzo’s own experiences traveling around the country and observing emerging randomly.” what real America was like, he explained. Maybe the younger “me” generation does suffer from too many options, overColaizzo himself is on the fast track to success, and in that way at least, he whelming media and technology, and the residual American greed of the ’80s and resembles the ambitious characters he creates. A graduate of New York University, ’90s. Whatever the case, this play shows us that maybe really, really wanting somehe started out as an actor and penned “Really Really” in the backseat of a 10-pas- thing is not reason enough to get it. senger van while on tour as a cast member of “Great Expectations,” his first gig out of college. He switched to playwriting full time in 2009 and landed an associate Lisa Troshinsky is the theater reviewer for The Washington Diplomat.

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The Washington Diplomat

March 2012

[ art ]

Spiritual Geometry Introspective Indian Artist Meditates on religion and Beyond by Michael coleman

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glance at Anil Revri’s work doesn’t immediately conjure thoughts of religion. But the Indian-born artist’s new exhibition “Anil Revri: Faith and Liberation through Abstraction” at the American University’s Katzen Arts Center is — according to the artist himself — a deep meditation on the ways religion can help and hinder the human experience. It’s about how religion should unite rather than disunite, Revri explained during a discussion of his exhibition at the Indian Embassy. “The central message is that religion is not a divisive force,” Revri said, although it’s clear from some of his comments and even his work that he is not always comfortable with religious dogma. “It is the dogma of religious scripture that prevents us from uniting with the Supreme Being,” he said, adding that, “I’d rather be a good human being than a good Hindu.” The Katzen exhibition offers a comprehensive look at the New Delhi native’s artwork, which frequently consists of geometric grids that give the viewer perspective by drawing attention from the outer edges into the serene center of the canvas. Revri leads the viewer into the void — represented by negative space — employing a variation of dotted, curved and oblique lines that help create the illusion of three-dimensional space. Trained as a draftsman, Revri is able to construct visual effects that resonate in surprising ways. He works without the assistance of computers or other digital technology, relying solely on old-fashioned rulers to create his precise lines. Most of the work is constructed on a grid and while at times repetitious, patient viewers Anil revri: Faith and liberation will find myriad optical rewards. through Abstraction PHoToS: AnIl rEVrI The first part of the exhibition, titled through April 15 “Works: Ram Darwaza,” is heavily geometric Anil revri’s “Pages From a Manuscript” series uses texts from various religions to subtly in nature and consists of mixed media on convey the Indian artist’s reflections on spirituality. American University Museum canvas.The second part,“Works: Pages From a at the Katzen Arts center Manuscript,” employs a more varied color the center of the piece.The effect grounds the viewer and gives him or her something 4400 Massachusetts Ave., nW palette as Revri switches to mixed media on more tangible than his other strictly geometric patterns. For more information, please call (202) 885-1300 “Now is the gracious Lord’s ordinance promulgated, no one shall cause another pain handmade paper. While the images are or visit www.american.edu/cas/museum. impressive and even sometimes mesmerizing, or injury; all mankind shall live in peace together, under a shield of administrative benevolence,” reads the text from the Sikh holy scripture at the center of one particuit can be difficult to extract religious meaning from them. Indeed, the Katzen describes Revri’s paintings as “aids to meditation, while at the larly ornate piece. According to the Katzen, these spiritual meditations were inspired in part by same time the process of their creation is itself an act of meditation.” “They are beautiful, their craft is breathtaking, but their success depends on wheth- Byzantine icons, which were thought to be windows into heaven. Through the icon, er they further us, and the artist, along in the process of our own enlightenment,” said the viewer could know God and experience the miraculous, and it was expected that the Byzantine iconographer would lead a Jack Rasmussen, director and curator of life of prayer, discipline and devotion — the American University Museum at principles Revri adheres to in his own Katzen. art. The religious connotations become Infinity also plays a large role in his more apparent in a series of three “suites” work and is used to convey the different presented as mixed media on arches paper, Spanish artist Cristóbal Gabarrón has exhibited his paintings and sculptures in hundreds states of the conscious and subconscious. mostly in gilded gold and inky black or of shows all around the world, but “Gabarrón’s roots” at the Katzen Arts Center marks his After spending years working in more grey shades. In some frames, Revri depicts first display in Washington, D.C. extroverted mediums, Revri said the relisemi-recognizable edifices represented by It’s about time. The artist, now in his 60s, began exhibiting his work regularly at the tender age of 19. gious themes encourage viewers to look religious structures. Washingtonians will get a taste of his strangely haunting “tondos,” or circular works of inward, as he has done. In these works, Revri uses more literal art, that evoke primitive cave paintings or indigenous tribal art, as well as his more modern, “I want to look as far in as I had looked material to convey his meditation on relilife-size sculptures featuring vivid colors and striking shapes. out,” he said. gion. He employs texts from various reliThe exhibition is one of the Katzen’s continuing collaborations with the Embassy of Spain gions — Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, and runs through April 15. — Anna Gawel Michael Coleman is a contributing writer for The Judaism, Islam, etc. — as the focal point, Washington Diplomat. with the text becoming abstract space at

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Gabarrón in Washington

March 2012

The Washington Diplomat Page 33

[ dining ]

Acacia Act II New Chef Rejuvenates Casual But Creative Bistro by Rachel G. Hunt

cacia Bistro and Wine Bar is the type of place that you might drive or walk by time and again before you even realized it was there. A small spot, seating only 60 people in the dining room and eight at the bar (95 with outside dining area), Acacia takes advantage of its corner location on Connecticut Avenue and Yuma Street with huge windows on two sides that let in plenty of light, even on drab winter days. The sidewalk seating expands the space significantly and is a lovely spot for clement days any time of year. But while casual passersby might not have noticed Acacia, devoted fans know perfectly well what delights are hidden behind the unassuming exterior, having followed Acacia’s venerable chef Liliana Dumas from Trattoria Liliana, where she headlined with her husband Maurizio, to the late Locanda on Capitol Hill and Assaggi Mozzarella Bar in Bethesda, Md. When Acacia opened in spring 2010 under the expert hands of chef Dumas and her son, general manager and sommelier Michel Dumas, it brought a badly needed infusion of superior cooking to the Van Ness neighborhood, which has yet to see the explosion of good restaurants that so many others areas of the city have experienced in the last five years. But all good things must come to an end. Chef Dumas has retired.To fill her large shoes, Acacia brought in a familiar face of Washington’s dining-out community. Ravi Narayanan has an eclectic background, having worked in top spots at notable restaurants on several continents since he began his culinary career as an apprentice to master French chef Robert Greault, well known locally for his work at the late lamented La Colline on Capitol Hill. As Dumas built up Acacia’s menu, she focused on Mediterranean cuiAcacia Bistro sine by offering specialties from the Liguria region of Italy from which and Wine Bar she hailed. Since joining Acacia, 4340 Connecticut Ave., NW Narayanan has reduced the size of (202) 537-1040 the menu, choosing instead to offer www.acaciabistro.com dishes that change on a regular basis (he plans to shift offerings every six to eight Hours: Mon. - Thu., 11 a.m. - 10 p.m.; Fri. and weeks). At the same time, he has retained Sat., 11 a.m. - 11 p.m.; Sun. - closed many of the longtime favorites and the modSmall plates: $5 - $12 est flair for which the bistro has earned respect. Entrées: $19 - $26 Dumas included classical Italian comfort Desserts: $9 dishes such as the anchovy toast and brandada de bacalau. Narayanan’s versions, which Reservations: Accepted offer a study in contrasts, are every bit as good as the originals. The crunchy fried anchovy toast bursts with a salty-fishy paste that is cut by a sharp lemon aioli.The dish is perfect in its simplicity. The brandada, a more complex small plate, is a dense emulsion of dried salted cod, potatoes and olive oil. Served with crostini, the dish is rich yet mild and surprisingly not salty considering its source. In general, Narayanan does not hone to any particular culinary style, having experience that cuts across many different traditions. He uses whatever ingredients and techniques he needs to create his vision of pure and simple dishes where each flavor stands out. Narayanan ensures that everything is fresh, and though he does not stick with exclusively local products (there is unfortunately no local source for black truf-

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The Washington Diplomat

Photos: Jessica Latos

Chef Ravi Narayanan, top, recently took over Acacia Bistro and Wine Bar, putting his individual spin on dishes such as the pan-seared sea scallops with saffron and leek risotto, hen of woods mushrooms and charred shallot sauce.

fles), he works with what is available to create highly seasonal dishes as much as possible. Narayanan faces the same challenges as his predecessor: a small kitchen space with limited capacity. In restricting the menu and bringing in everything daily, he has simplified the kitchen operation, which in turn allows him to devote greater attention to individual dishes.Acacia now makes all of its own stocks, pastas and even charcuterie in house, which had not always been the case. While more labor intensive, it helps to ensure that each dish emerges exactly according to Narayanan’s plan. The structure of Acacia’s new menu is also flexible, with a nice selection of starters and small plates that work well for casual meals and afternoon snacks. A healthy selection of entrées suits more formal dining, and the tempting desserts are ideal for any and every occasion. Among the small plates, there are a few that are just short of spectacular. One taste of the fritura de repollos — deep-fried kale and brussels sprout leaves dressed with baharat spices and served with tzatziki — could make you swear off potato chips forever. Who would have thought the humble sprout could end up like this? Another winning combo is the duet de salchichas, delicious house-made sausages of grilled lamb and venison served with a silky smooth celery root puree and mellow red wine syrup. The boulettes de pate de porc et canard is equally surprising. Pork and duck rilette is wrapped in potato lollipops, deep fried, and served with spicy Dijon mustard.These morsels are like junk food on steroids and might be just as addicting. After a couple of the rich starters, you might be inclined toward something a bit lighter as a main course.The baked black truffle crêpes, stuffed with 10-vegetable ragu and served with mixed greens, is a savory choice. Narayanan also does some nice pastas, some light, some not so.As a starter, he offers a ricotta and sage gnocchi with rosemary honey-glazed root vegetables, lavender and chervil that eschews traditional versions of the pasta. Narayanan’s gnocchi are small, delicate and slightly overpowered by the vegetables, while the herbs lend an elegant bouquet to the small but highly satisfying dish. Meanwhile, a much heartier papMarch 2012

from page 28

Cherry Blossoms

Itō Jakuchū’s “Fish,” from a set of 30 vertical hanging scrolls, will be on display for only four weeks at the National Gallery of Art.

which he painted the mountain. Some of the prints depict tranquil and serene views, while others are harsher, such as one showmarking only the second ing laboring lumberyard workers. time the triptych has been Others, like “The Great Wave,” capshown alongside the ture the force of nature, as a wall scrolls since 1889. Jakuchū of water seems to jump off the had donated both works print. to the monastery, which “You’re actually looking upward displayed them in a large almost as if you’re in the water temple room only during with the fisherman whose boats Buddhist rituals.When the are being towered over by this scrolls were given to the wave,” Yonemura said. Hokusai imperial family, the trip“does wonderful things to create tych remained at the monan empathetic view where you’re Photo: Sannomaru Shōzōkan, The Imperial Household Agency astery. having the same experience.” “It’s important that they be reunited because Hokusai produced his prints by first creating a this helps to explain the original context for the detailed drawing using a fine brush and ink on scrolls,” said guest curator Yukio Lippit, a profesvery thin paper. The final version went to the sor of art history and architecture at Harvard publishing house, where an expert block carver University.“When you look at the work, it’s clear would carve the cherry wood block and send the that he’s depicting a kind of summons where fish image through an assembly line-like hand-printand animals and all kinds of creatures of the ing process. It began by printing the lines and world are gathering to one spot to be the audithen moving the paper to color blocks. ence for the teaching of the Buddha. This really “One of the wonderful experiences is going to underscores the religious context of the paintbe to take time to savor Hokusai’s enormous ings.” understanding both of nature and of imaginaThe scrolls, painted over 10 years, belong to a tion,”Yonemura said. genre of East Asian art known as bird-and-flower paintings, which are usually auspicious and pro‘Colorful Realm of Living Beings’ duced according to the highest standards of acaTied to the Sackler exhibits in that the three demic painting, Lippit explained.“Colorful Realm” shows represent a unique opportunity to see is considered the greatest example of bird-andentire series by three influential Japanese artists, flower paintings, he added. “Colorful Realm of Living Beings” is a 30-scroll set One of the most virtuosic scrolls in the set is of paintings by Itō Jakuchū on loan from the one of two pieces titled “Fish.” It’s a motley colImperial Household and presented in its entirety lection of freshwater and ocean fish, including for the first time in the United States. the famed blowfish and an octopus, that would This set of bird-and-flower paintings on silk never be seen together in nature. Instead, Jakuchū offers a panoramic pictorial survey of flora and draws from his experiences seeing such creafauna, both mythical and actual, and will only be tures as a green grocer in Kyoto. on display for four weeks because the scrolls are “When you look at this up close, you really see so fragile. how the texture of the fish scales [and the] glisThe show also reunites the scrolls with tening, gelatinous quality of the details of the Jakuchū’s triptych of the Buddha Śākyamuni skin of the fish are captured in different ways from the Zen monastery Shōkokuji in Kyoto — — somehow glistening but also somehow muted

from page 34

Dining pardelle comes with a rich braised lamb ragu. Big chunks of tender lamb vie with carrot rounds while the inventive addition of turnip introduces a slightly bitter note to the sauce. It’s an interesting and effective innovation. Fettuccine with wild mushroom sauce is also delicious, though the description of it as a cream sauce is slightly misleading since it seems more oil olive- than cream-based. But the misnomer is a minor quibble in an otherwise stellar dish. One of the particularly intriguing aspects of Narayanan’s work is how he pairs the main element with creative accents. Cabbage crepinette; huckleberry gastrique sauce; sun-dried tomato ginger chutney; potato mousseline; fresh dill blini; tart of caramelized endive; shallots and lardons all make an appearance and are worth several trips or a big group willing to share and taste them all. Narayanan also admirably aims to show diners the range of true Mediterranean flavors, so shellfish pops up routinely on the menu. The seafood bisque risotto with grilled prawn and seafood sausage is a robust medley of Mediterranean delights.A more refined choice is the large sea scallops, pan seared and served with a saffron leek risotto, hen of woods mushrooms and charred shallot sauce, all perfectly prepared with a slightly caramelized crust. Lamb also turns up in several places, the most appealing of which may be the lamb shank March 2012

entrée. Roasted with Moroccan spices, tomato and aromatic vegetables, and complemented by mint gremolata and coarse-grained Israeli couscous in a tomato sauce, the flavor almost transports you to sunnier climes. As a wine bar, not surprisingly Acacia has put considerable effort into developing its wine list. Michel Dumas has assembled a collection that, while not huge, is well balanced and affordable, with labels from around the world. Every selection is available by the half glass, full glass, quarter liter or bottle, making it possible to do a lot more tasting than is usually possible. Dumas has also put together a fun set of wine flights if you want to leave the choosing to someone else. Liliana Dumas was well known for her desserts, which relied more on the flavor of the ingredients than mere sweetness for their appeal. Longtime Acacia fans will not miss her absence. Besides a decadent chocolate tart with “melting” chocolate truffle and the lighter pear and vanilla bean brioche served with winepoached pear, Narayanan offers a pistachio trinity that is truly brilliant. This concoction of vanilla sponge cake, pistachio dacquoise, pistachio mousse, pistachio, crème anglaise and fudge sauce is rich, sweet and nutty, but surprisingly light. And it’s worth the trip all by itself. Narayanan has explained that his approach to cooking rests on the three pillars: cuisine of the moment, cuisine natural, and cuisine inspiration. This triumphant trio has given Acacia a successful second act that should not be missed. Rachel G. Hunt is the restaurant reviewer for The Washington Diplomat.

as if floating in water,” Lippit said. This effect is caused by Jakuchū’s use of mixing and matching pigments and painting on the back and front of the silk panels to take advantage of their porosity in achieving coloristic effects. The exhibition of the scrolls in D.C. is a celebration not only of the centennial cherry blossom festival but also of the ties between the United States and Japan, said Ichiro Fujisaki, ambassador of Japan, in exhibit materials. “We were so grateful for America’s show of solidarity and support after the multiple disasters that struck Japan in March 2011,” he said. “If this collection were to be shown anywhere in the world outside of Japan for the first time, where else would it go but the United States?”

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Colorful Realm of Living Beings

March 30 to April 29 National Gallery of Art on the National Mall between 3rd and 9th Streets at Constitution Avenue, NW For more information, please call (202) 737-4215 or visit www.nga.gov.

]

Very Cherry Willard Like many area hotels, the Willard InterContinental Washington will be offering special festival-related deals, such as the Very Cherry Blossom Package for two ($449), including a picnic basket lunch and Old Town Trolley tour tickets; the Cherry Blossom Afternoon Tea ($39 or $49 with an alcoholic beverage); and daily prix fixe menus fusing French, Japanese and cherry foods in the Michelin-rated Café du Parc. But the Willard has a special connection to Japan and will pay homage to that history by displaying local artists’ work. The first delegation from Japan to visit the United States stayed at the Willard in 1860. The

Photo: Willard InterContinental Washington

The Willard InterContinental Washington is offering a Cherry Blossom Afternoon Tea in its Peacock Alley to celebrate the National Cherry Blossom Festival.

group of three ambassadors and their retinue of 74 came to sign the nations’ first trade and amity treaties. “The beauty of this trip was that it was documented quite a bit by the media at the time,” said Barbara Bahny-David, spokeswoman for the hotel. “There are a lot of sketches of these cultural exchanges” in the history gallery. One shows a group seeing a sewing machine for the first time as they watched a Willard seamstress. This year, live cherry blossoms will be accompanied by Ikebana arrangements from the D.C. Chapter 1 Ikebana International. Ikebana is the traditional art of flower arranging whose roots can be traced to the introduction of Buddhism to Japan in the sixth century, according to the organization. More than 2,000 schools of Ikebana exist. Four of them will be represented in the works to be showcased at the hotel. A display of lifelike Japanese dolls made by Akiko Keene, founder of the Washington Japanese Dolls & Crafts School, will also be showcased and available for purchase. Stephanie Kanowitz is a contributing writer for The Washington Diplomat.

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[ film reviews ]

Albanian Justice Eye-for-Eye Blood Feud Imprisons Family in ‘Forgiveness’ by Ky N. Nguyen

ed by a classical score, including modern pieces by Philip Glass and Max Richter.The meditative result, which premiered at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival, is an inspiring portrait of a man n 2004, American writer-director whose dedication to his work has led to Joshua Marston’s astonishing debut, unmatched professional accomplishment but “Maria Full of Grace,” a largely palpable, if understated, family tensions. Spanish-language story about Jiro owns Sukiyabashi Jiro, the first sushi-only Colombian drug mules, put him on restaurant awarded the coveted top three stars the cinematic map. His long-awaitby the prestigious Michelin guide, an honor ed sophomore effort, “The held by only about 80 restaurants worldwide. Forgiveness of Blood,” is not quite as bruHis tiny 10-seat restaurant is surprisingly situattal despite its title, but the underlying ed in the basement of a Tokyo subway station. threat of violence pervades the picture. Patrons must wait at least a month to get a resMarston got the idea for the film after ervation for a 15- to 30-minute meal that costs reading a newspaper article about a teen30,000 yen (about $375), only to get infamously ager caught up in a blood feud in modern curt service from Jiro, who doesn’t tolerate any Albania, where the director spent a month special requests. conducting research. Food writer Yamamoto wonders, rhetorically, Marston and Albanian-born filmmaker how Jiro’s sushi can be so simple yet so deliAndamion Murataj (also co-producer and cious. Its surface simplicity belies the complexcasting director) co-wrote the screenplay, ity behind Jiro’s sushi-making process. His store Photo: Anila Jaho / Sundance Selects which won the Silver Bear for best script buys ingredients only from specialists who are at the Berlin International Film Festival. Nik (Tristan Halilaj), left, and his younger brother Dren (Elsajed Tallalli) are forced to stay the very best in their field: fish, rice, seaweed, Their script is brought to life by the indoors after their father sparks a murderous feud in “The Forgiveness of Blood.” soy sauce, wasabi, etc. An apprenticeship under authentic performances that the director Jiro, a Shokunin (traditional sushi master), takes commands from a non-professional cast recruited from the mountains of northern 10 years to complete. Jiro stresses the importance of every detail, requiring much pracAlbania. Marston’s naturalistic direction helps make the film’s world feel very real to the tice to perfect, which he personally inspects before every meal. As a workaholic, “Jiro audience despite an intrinsically slow middle act. dislikes holidays.They are too long for him,” says Yamamoto. In an opening scene, two groups of men banter at each other in a café. Sokol (Veton Jiro’s young sons saw so little of their father that Osmani) ominously quips, “Sometimes the long road is shorter … and safe.” It turns out when he slept in one Sunday, his younger son Jiro Dreams of Sushi the state has granted Sokol land formerly owned by the grandfather of Mark (Refet Abazi). Takashi asked his mother, “Who’s the strange man (Japanese with subtitles; 81 min.) Later, during his bread delivery route on a horse and cart, Mark finds Sokol has blocked sleeping here?” During his rough childhood, Jiro was off his shortcut.Angry, Mark goes home, gets his brother Zef (Luan Jaha) and revisits Sokol Landmark’s E Street Cinema abandoned by his father. Despite his absence from — an encounter that results in Sokol’s death and repercussions for Mark’s entire family. Opens Fri., March 23 home, Jiro has certainly loved and cared for his own While Mark goes into hiding, Zef is arrested. According to the Kanun, a 15th-century sons, who treat him with proper filial respect and a ★★★★✩ legal code still followed in Albania, any male member of Mark’s family is subject to a modicum of fear. Younger brother Takashi has been revenge killing by Sokol’s family, an eye-for-an-eye form of justice. Nik (Tristan Halilaj), able to partially escape his father’s orbit by heading the family company’s second sushi Mark’s 17-year-old son, is forced to stay inside the family’s house, curtailing his budding restaurant in another part of Tokyo. It’s joked that customers say they can get the same relationship with his pretty classmate Bardha (Zana Hasaj) and dreams of starting an quality sushi at Takashi’s restaurant without internet café.To be safe, his younger brother Dren also remains at home, being intimidated by Jiro. despite technically being too young to be targeted according to the Jiro says, “Although I’m 85 years old, I don’t Kanun. With all the family’s males feel like retiring yet.”As the eldest son,Yoshikazu out of commission, Nik’s younger The Forgiveness of Blood is expected to succeed his father, for whom he’s teenage sister Rudina (Sindi Laçej), (Falja e Gjakut) still working at age 50.Yoshikazu is conscious of an A student, has to leave school the difficulty of his position in Jiro’s large shad(Albanian with subtitles; 109 min.) to take over the family business ow, lamenting that people wouldn’t say his Landmark’s E Street Cinema delivering bread. sushi is as good as Jiro’s until it is actually twice The Kanun permits the negotiaOpens Fri., March 9 as good. Yet Yamamoto notes that it was tion of a mediated settlement Yoshikazu who actually made the sushi for ★★★✩✩ between the families, a possibility Michelin’s inspectors that earned Jiro’s restauSokol’s family won’t discuss until Mark is in custody. Stir-crazy Nik urges rant three stars. his father to turn himself in, which Mark resists since Sokol’s cousin is a police officer.The film’s middle section effectively depicts the family’s growing tension and claustrophobia while living in a prison partly of Son of Swinton their own making. Scottish actress Tilda Swinton (“Michael Photo: Magnolia Pictures Clayton,”“Burn After Reading,”“I Am Love”) delivSushi master Jiro Ono, left, and his son Yoshikazu work in ers another haunting performance as a mother Sushi Dynasty the father’s Michelin-three-star restaurant in the documenat her wits’ end in Scottish writer-director Lynne “Jiro Dreams of Sushi,” American director-producer David Gelb’s tary “Jiro Dreams of Sushi.” Ramsay’s “We Need to Talk About Kevin.” impressive feature film debut, succeeds as a straightforward biography Ramsay’s long awaited third film (after 2002’s “Morvern Callar” and 1999’s “Ratcatcher”), of Jiro Ono, an 85-year-old Japanese man regarded by many as the world’s best sushi chef. set in New York City and its suburbs, was adroitly adapted from Lionel Shriver’s highly Gelb’s restrained direction is worthy of his Japanese subject. Like Jiro’s sushi, the docuregarded best-selling novel by Ramsay and co-writer Rory Stewart Kinnear. mentary’s minimalist style appears clean and simple, which gets the job done very well. The chronologically fragmented story, artfully depicting the frazzled state of mind of Much of the content consists of informative interviews with food writer Masuhiro Yamamoto, Jiro, his sons, staff and vendors. Lingering, mouthwatering shots of the sushi See film reviews, page 39 place the film in the category of food porn.The beautiful imagery is nicely complement-

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[ Page 36

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The Washington Diplomat

March 2012

[ film festivals ]

Healthy Showing Environmental Film Fest Links Our Well Being to Planet’s on 20th Anniversary by Ky N. Nguyen

Fest’s third annual Polly Krakora Award for artistry in film.The director had set out to create “a visual haiku about cherry blossoms” in Japan but changed her plans after the devastathe behemoth 20th annual Envi ing earthquake and tsunami that hit the counronmental Film Festival in the try on March 11, 2011, instead connecting the Nation’s Capital (March 13-25) has disaster to the beloved flower’s ephemeral grown to become one of Wash quality of life and healing. ington’s largest cultural events, preOpening night presents the D.C. premiere sented in partnership with more of “Switch,” a documentary about the change than 100 international, national from fossil fuels to renewable energy, and a and local groups. memorial tribute to Nobel Prize winner Founded by Flo Stone in 1993, the festival Wangari Maathai, a leading environmentalist attracted some 1,200 people in its inaugural from Kenya. The closing night film, “A Fierce year. Today, it’s expanded to become the Green Fire: The Battle for a Living Planet,” a nation’s largest showcase of environmental 2012 Sundance Film Festival selection, surveys films, pulling in an audience of more than the environmental movement in the United 30,000. States. And for its 20th anniversary, the Environ Meanwhile, the health and economic effects mental Film Festival is pulling out all the of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico are stops, offering no less than 180 narrative, examined in “The Big Fix and Beyond documentary, archival, animated, experimenPollution,” while the environmental impact of tal and children’s films from 42 countries, Photo: Lucy Walker Alberta’s tar sands and the proposed Keystone including 93 world, U.S. and D.C. premieres. Lucy Walker’s “The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom” receives the third annual Polly XL Pipeline are explored in “Dirty Oil” and In addition, 75 filmmakers and 115 special Krakora Award for artistry in film at the 2012 Environmental Film Festival. “Pipe Dreams.” guests will discuss the films, including top Other highlights include famous documentary filmmaker Ken Burns presenting advance names such as documentarian Ken Burns. Screenings take place at 64 area venues, includclips of his upcoming film, “The Dust Bowl” (Sun., March 25, 2 p.m.), at the National ing embassies, museums, universities, libraries and theaters. Environmental issues remain as hot a topic as ever — from the fervent debate over cli- Archives, while at the National Museum of Natural History, envimate change around the world, to solar panel scandals in Washington, to the fight for scarce ronmental filmmaker Deborah Koons Garcia (“The Future of For more resources in Sudan.This year, the Environmental Film Festival aims to hit close to home by Food”) presents the world premiere of “Symphony of the Soil” on the Environ to linking human and animal health with the planet’s well being — the special theme for (Sun., March 25, 4 p.m.), a documentary focusing on soil’s often mental Film overlooked importance in the history of the Earth, followed by 2012. Festival in the Nation’s Capital, “The water we drink, the food we eat and the air we breathe are all essential to human a panel discussion. please call (202) 342-2564 or visit Vanguard filmmaker Perry Miller Adato also screens her most life.The effects of toxins and pollutants on the human life support system can be disastrous www.dcenvironmentalfilmfest.org. to our health,” the festival website says. “Our films address the complex relationship recent documentary,“Paris:The Luminous Years” (Sat., March 24, between health and the environment with the warning that whatever we do to the envi- 1 p.m.) at the Phillips Collection. Another French entry, “La Clé des Champs (The Field of Enchantment),” is a U.S. premiere that spotlights the wonders of ronment we do to ourselves.” The subject matter spans the eco spectrum, ranging from the disastrous introduction of nature through close-up photography. Indeed, the international lineup — and embassy collaboration — is expansive. From oil cane toads into Australia, to a water contamination cover-up by the U.S. Marine Corps, to a group of proud Scottish homeowners taking on celebrity tycoon Donald Trump as he buys digging in Ecuador’s Amazon jungle, to chemicals poisoning Inuit communities in Greenland, to radioactive wolves contaminated by the fallout from Chernobyl, virtually up one of Scotland’s last vestiges of wilderness to build a golf resort. A centerpiece of the festival is a retrospective of Lucy Walker’s career (March 17-25) at every corner of the planet is covered, offering a fascinating glimpse into just how much AFI Silver that celebrates the British documentarian with a five-film series. Presented with that planet shapes every aspect of our lives — and vice versa. the Embassy of Japan, Walker will screen her latest film, the Academy Award-nominated “The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom,” which is the recipient of the Environmental Film Ky N. Nguyen is the film reviewer for The Washington Diplomat.

learn

Repertory Notes

by Washington Diplomat film reviewer Ky N. Nguyen

Please see International Film Clips on the next page for detailed listings available at press time.

American Film Institute (AFI) Silver Theatre AFI series include the 10th annual New African Films Festival (March 8-13), co-presented by AFI, TransAfrica and afrikafé; “La Bohème” in “Opera in Cinema” (March 13, 17); “Ballet in Cinema” (March 11-25); “Dickens in the Cinema: A Bicentennial Retrospective” (through April 9); “Screen Valentines: Great Movie Romances” (through March 7); “Bigger Than Life: The Films of Nicholas Ray” (through April 12); “Gene Kelly Centennial Retrospective” (through April 5); and “Things to Come: The City Imagined on Film” (through April 5). (301) 495-6700, www.afi.com/silver

National Gallery of Art

Freer Gallery of Art

“Robert Bresson” (March 3-April 1) is a complete retrospective of all existing films by the late French auteur (1901-99), known for his minimalist productions. The series is organized by the Cinemathèque Ontario with assistance from the Cultural Services of the French Embassy, the Institut français, and Paramount.

In partnership with the AFI Silver Theatre, “Korean Film Festival DC 2012: The Art of the Moving Image from Korea” (March 11-April 26) opens at the Freer with Lee Jae-young’s mature comedy “Foxy Festival” (Sun., March 11, 2 p.m.)

Art films and events include: Steve Elkins’s documentary about the Kronos Quartet, titled “The Reach of Resonance” (March 15-16, 12:30 p.m.); Ghana-born, British film and installation artist John Akomfrah’s “The Nine Muses” (Sat., March 17, 2 p.m.); and Lotte Stoops’s documentary about Mozambique’s monument to Portuguese colonialism turned commune, “Grande Hotel” (Sat., March 24, 4 p.m.). (202) 842-6799, www.nga.gov/programs/film

March 2012

In collaboration with the Korean Film Festival DC 2012, “Moving Perspectives” (March 15-April 26) showcases contemporary Korean video art in the Freer’s Meyer Auditorium. Minouk Lim’s “SOS Adoptive Dissensus” (2009) and “Firecliff 2_Seoul” (2011) are installed March 15 to 17. (Through March 18, her work can also be seen in the Arthur M. Sackler’s pavilion exhibit, “Perspectives: Minouk Lim.”) Hyunjhin Baik’s “The End” (2009) runs March 29 to 31. (202) 357-2700, www.asia.si.edu/events/films.asp

The Washington Diplomat Page 37

[ film ]

CINEMA LISTING *unless specific times are listed, please check the theater for times. theater locations are subject to change.

Chandani: Daughter of the Elephant whisperer

Czech

the profession of mahout (elephant whisperer) in Sri lanka has traditionally been reserved for men, so when young chandani becomes determined to follow in her father’s footsteps, she has to show extraordinary dedication to prove herself. (eFF; in english and Sinhala)

All for the Good of the world and Nosovice (vse Pro Dobro Sveta a Nosovic) Directed by Vít Klusák (Czech Republic, 2010, 82 min.)

in the small czech village of nošovice, a uFo has landed in the form of a kilometerlong factory: a Korean hyundai automobile plant. (eFF) Embassy of the Czech Republic Thu., March 22, 7 p.m.

Mamas & Papas Directed by Alice Nellis (Czech Republic, 2010, 110 min.)

the fates of four couples intertwine in a critical moment of their lives, as they deal with questions of planned, unplanned, desired or thwarted parenthood in parallel stories. The Avalon Theatre Wed., March 14, 8 p.m.

English Barcelona Directed by Whit Stillman (U.S., 1994, 101 min.)

taylor nichols is an innocent abroad, posted to the Barcelona office of his chicago manufacturing firm, when his cousin, a navy lieutenant, comes to town to scout for trouble ahead of the Sixth Fleet’s upcoming shore leave. (english and Spanish)

Directed by Arne Birkenstock (Germany/Sri Lanka, 2010, 88 min.)

National Gallery of Art Sat., March 17, 10:30 a.m.

Coriolanus Directed by Ralph Fiennes (U.K., 2011, 122 min.)

A banished hero of rome allies with a sworn enemy to take his revenge on the city. Theater TBA Opens Fri., Feb. 17

Dreams of Dust Directed by Laurent Salgues (Burkina Faso/France/Canada, 2006, 86 min.)

A nigerian peasant journeys to a dusty gold-mining village in Burkina Faso, where he hopes to forget his past — encountering a mother struggling to raise her daughter after her own tragedy. (FcF) S. Dillon Ripley Center Wed., March 14, 7 p.m.

The hunter Directed by Daniel Nettheim (Australia, 2011, 100 min.)

AFI Silver Theatre March 25 to 27

A mercenary scientist is sent into the wilds of Australia by a mysterious european biotech company to search for the last tasmanian tiger in this psychological drama. (eFF)

Blindsight

AFI Silver Theatre Sat., March 24, 7:30 p.m.

Directed by Lucy Walker (U.K., 2006, 104 min.)

Set against the breathtaking backdrop of the himalayas, “Blindsight” follows the gripping adventure of six blind tibetan teenagers who set out to climb the north side of Mount everest. (eFF)

The Last Dogs of winter

THE WASHINGTON DIPLOMAT

NoTE *eFF = environmental Film Festival , *FcF = Francophonie cultural Festival Embassy of Austria Thu., March 15, 7:30 p.m.

return to Aeolian islands Directed by Giovanna Taviani (Italy, 2011, 82 min.)

waste Land

giovanna taviani looks at the stunning Aeolian islands off the coast of Sicily, which have inspired generations of legendary italian filmmakers. (eFF) Landmark’s E Street Cinema Wed., March 14, 7 p.m.

Salmon Fishing in the yemen Directed by Lasse Hallström (U.K., 2011, 107 min.)

in this inspirational romance, a British fisheries expert is approached by a consultant to help realize a sheik’s ambitious vision of bringing the sport of fly-fishing to the desert. Landmark’s E Street Cinema Opens Fri., March 9

Silent Show: The invisible Poisoning of the world Directed by Jan van den Berg (The Netherlands, 2010, 71 min.)

the Arctic plains are an eminent example of nature’s untouched beauty, but chemical residues from all over the world accumulate here invisibly, poisoning both humans and animals. (eFF) Royal Netherlands Embassy Thu., March 15, 6:30 p.m.

Some Kind of Funny Porto rican: A Cape verdean American Story Directed by Claire AndradeWatkins (Cape Verde/U.S., 2006, 83 min.)

this indie documentary portrays the fate of the cape Verdean community from the Providence neighborhood of Fox Point after being displaced by urban renewal projects in the 1950s. (FcF)

AFI Silver Theatre Mon., March 19, 7:45 p.m.

Cane Toads: The Conquest

AFI Silver Theatre Sat., March 17, 1 p.m.

Directed by Mark Lewis (Australia, 2010, 85 min.)

orson Welles renders Franz Kafka’s unfinished novel into a satisfying cinematic whole, adding a bookended parable that finds the fractured fairy tale within.

Play Time

AFI Silver Theatre Sat., March 10, 1 p.m.

Landmark’s E Street Cinema Wed., March 21, 6 and 8 p.m.

Charlotte rampling: The Look Directed by Angelina Maccarone (Germany/France, 2011, 98 min.)

this fascinating biographical study of legendary actress charlotte rampling is told through her own conversations with artist friends and collaborators. (english, French and german) Landmark’s E Street Cinema Opens Fri., March 2

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The Washington Diplomat

Directed by Jacques Tati (France/Italy, 1967, 120 min.)

Monsieur hulot has to contact an American official in Paris, but he gets lost in the maze of modern architecture that is filled with the latest technical gadgets. (english, French and german)

S. Dillon Ripley Center Wed., March 28, 7 p.m.

The Trial Directed by Orson Welles (France/Italy/W. Germany, 1962, 118 min.)

The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom Directed by Lucy Walker (U.K., 2011, 40 min.)

AFI Silver Theatre Sat., March 3, 1:20 p.m., Sun., March 4, 1 p.m.

oscar- nominated director lucy Walker set out to make “a visual haiku about cherry blossoms” in Japan but changed her plans radically following the devastating earthquake and tsunami of 2011. (eFF)

radioactive wolves

AFI Silver Theatre Sat., March 17, 7:45 p.m.

Directed by Klaus Feichtenberger (Austria, 2011, 50 min.)

After the explosion of the chernobyl nuclear reactor in 1986, around 340,000 people were displaced from the exclusion zone. in the absence of humans, a profusion of wild species has taken over, and at the top of this ecosystem is the wolf. (eFF)

the natural world. (eFF) Town Hall Education Arts & Recreation Campus (THEARC) Tue., March 20, 10:30 a.m.

directed by costa Botes (new Zealand, 2011, 97 min.) For the past 40 years, in a harshly beautiful corner of northern Manitoba, Brian ladoon has devoted his life to preserving and breeding an endangered species: the Qimmiq, canada’s indigenous eskimo dog. (eFF)

Shot against the harsh landscape of northern Australia, this is a comic account of Australia’s most notorious environmental blunder, the introduction of cane toads from hawaii to control the beetles decimating Queensland’s sugar cane crops. (eFF)

March 2012

Turtle: The incredible Journey Directed by Nick Stringer (U.K./Austria/Germany, 2009, 81 min.)

this is the story of a loggerhead turtle as she follows the path of her ancestors on one of the most extraordinary journeys in

Directed by Lucy Walker (U.K./Brazil, 2010, 99 min.)

renowned artist Vik Muniz travels from Brooklyn to his native Brazil and the world’s largest garbage dump, Jardim gramacho, located on the outskirts of rio de Janeiro, where he photographs an eclectic band of “catadores” — self-designated pickers of recyclable materials. (eFF) AFI Silver Theatre Mon., March 19, 3 p.m.

wild Scandinavia: Finland Directed by Oliver Goetzl and Ivo Nörenber (Germany, 2011, 52 min.)

nude dance show in the world. Landmark’s E Street Cinema

Les Dames du Bois de Boulogne Directed by Robert Bresson (France, 1945, 90 min.)

hélène, doubting her lover’s devotion, plots a bitter revenge by enticing him into a relationship with a prostitute, taking pains to disguise the true occupation of her innocent decoy. National Gallery of Art Sat., March 10, 4:30 p.m.

The Devil, Probably (Le Diable Probablement) Directed by Robert Bresson (France, 1977, 90 min.)

Anxious over the world’s problems and growing greed, a student begins in protest to plan his own death. National Gallery of Art Sat., March 24, 2 p.m.

this film shows animal behavior never filmed before from various species in Finland, home to rare animals such as bears, wolves, lynx, wolverines and Siberian Flying squirrel. (eFF)

Diary of a Country Priest (Journal d’un Curé de Campagne)

Embassy of Finland Thu., March 22, 6 p.m.

A naive priest, settling into his first assignment after seminary, dedicates himself to his local parishioners who, in turn, often mock him and fail to appreciate his work.

you’ve Been Trumped Directed by Anthony Baxter (U.K., 2011, 95 min.)

in this david and goliath story for the 21st century, a group of proud Scottish homeowners take on celebrity tycoon donald trump as he buys up one of Scotland’s last wilderness areas to build a golf resort. (eFF) Landmark’s E Street Cinema Tue., March 13, 7 p.m.

Finnish Moomins and the Comet Chase (Muumi Ja Punainen Pyrstötähti) Directed by Maria Lindberg (Finland, 2010, 75 min.)

in this animated adventure, Moomintroll notices that something strange has happened in the Moomin Valley: everything is grey — not just the sky and the river, but the trees, the ground, and even the Moominhouse, too! (eFF) The Avalon Theatre Sat., March 24, 10:30 a.m.

French Les Anges du Péché Directed by Robert Bresson (France, 1943, 100 min.)

A novice in the Sisters of Bethany convent has to confront her own bourgeois background and immature moral character when she takes on the rehabilitation of a delinquent woman imprisoned for crimes committed by a lover. National Gallery of Art Sat., March 3, 2 p.m.

Crazy horse Directed by Frederick Wiseman (U.S./France, 2011, 134 min.)

Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Frederick Wiseman goes inside Paris’s crazy horse cabaret, the most famous

Directed by Robert Bresson (France, 1950, 114 min.)

National Gallery of Art Sun., March 11, 4:30 p.m.

The Field of Enchantment (La Clé des Champs) Directed by Claude Nuridsany and Marie Perennou (France, 2011, 81 min.)

As two lonely children silently prowl around a pond, creating a small kingdom of dreaming and playing, the filmmakers depict their passion for nature by closely observing plant and animal life and then adding a charming story with human characters. (eFF) AMC Loews Georgetown Tue., March 20, 6:30 p.m.

Four Nights of a Dreamer (Quatre Nuits d’un rêveur) Directed by Robert Bresson (France, 1972, 91 min.)

An artist who dreams of finding an idyllic love discovers a young woman who has just lost her lover in this reimaging of dostoyevsky’s 1948 “White nights.” National Gallery of Art Sat., March 17, 4:30 p.m.

The Kid with a Bike (Le Gamin au velo) Directed by JeanPierre and Luc Dardenne (Belgium/France/Italy, 2011, 87 min.)

A 12-year-old has only one plan: find the father who temporarily left him in a children’s home. Along the way, he meets a hair salon owner who calms his rage. (FcF) Letelier Theatre Thu., March 8, 7 p.m.

Lancelot du Lac Directed by Robert Bresson (France, 1974, 95 min.)

the knights return to King Arthur’s court after their failed quest for the holy grail,

March 2012

their fellowship in decline in this deconstruction of the legend. National Gallery of Art Sat., March 31, 4 p.m.

A Man Escaped (Le vent) Directed by Robert Bresson (France, 1956, 95 min.)

A French Resistance activist is imprisoned by the Nazis and devotes his waking hours to planning an elaborate escape. (French and German) National Gallery of Art Sun., March 25, 4:30 p.m.

Pickpocket Directed by Robert Bresson (France, 1959, 75 min.)

The all but lost art of the pickpocket — an occupation dependent on a perpetrator’s economy of gesture and expressionless face — was the subject of one of Robert Bresson’s most memorable works. National Gallery of Art Sat., March 3, 4:15 p.m.

Titeuf Directed by Zep (Switzerland/Belgium, 2011, 87 min.)

Based on Europe’s bestselling comic character, “Titeuf, the film” is the feature debut of Swiss comic book artist Zep, chronicling a boy whose childlike view of the adult world is equal parts naiveté and early-teen rebelliousness. (FCF) The Avalon Theatre Sat., March 17, 10 a.m.

The Trial of Joan of Arc (Procès de Jeanne d’Arc) Directed by Robert Bresson (France, 1962, 65 min.)

Court transcripts from Joan of Arc’s 15th-century heresy trial are presented without pretext or emotion in this direct, unadorned recreation. (French and English) National Gallery of Art Sat., March 31, 2:30 p.m.

German The Fatherless (Die Veterlosen) Directed by Marie Kreutzer (Austria, 2011, 104 min.)

When the charismatic former leader of a sexually liberated commune in the Austrian countryside dies, his four adult children reunite for his funeral and thrash out their complicated feelings about their childhood. (FCF) The Avalon Theatre Wed., March 21, 8 p.m.

Greek My Sweet Canary Directed by Roy Sher (Israel/Greece/France/Germany, 2011, 89 min.)

In this documentary, three young musicians embark on a musical journey to tell the story of Roza Eskenazi, Greece’s beloved rebetiko singer. (Multiple languages) The Avalon Theatre Wed., March 7, 8 p.m.

Hebrew Footnote (Hearat Shulayim) Directed by Joseph Cedar (Israel, 2011, 105 min.)

A father and son are rival professors in the Talmudic studies department of Hebrew University, a rivalry that escalates when the father is chosen for a prestigious national award. Landmark’s E Street Cinema Opens Fri., March 16

A sewer worker and petty thief in the Nazioccupied Polish city of Lvov hides a group of Jews for money in the labyrinth of the town’s sewer system, but what starts out as a cynical business arrangement turns into something unexpected. (Polish, Ukrainian, Yiddish and German)

Francophonie Cultural Festival The Francophonie Cultural Festival’s (March 8-April 4) “films from around the world” showcase opens with Belgian directors JeanPierre and Luc Dardenne’s “The Kid with a Bike” (Thu., March 8, 7 p.m.) at the Letelier Theatre. Switzerland’s multi-director anthology, “Blame it on Rousseau!” (Mon., March 12, 7 p.m.), celebrates the philosopher’s 300th birthday at the Embassy of Switzerland. The Smithsonian’s Ripley Center shows Laurent

Japanese

Salgues’s “Dreams of Dust” (Wed., March 14, 7 p.m.) and Claire Andrade-Watkins’s “Some Kind of Funny Porto Rican: A Cape Verdean American Story” (Wed., March 28, 7 p.m.) set in Burkina Faso. The Avalon Theatre screens Swiss comic book artist Zep’s directorial debut feature, “Titeuf, the Film” (Sat., March 17, 10 a.m.) and Austrian director Marie Kreutzer’s “The Fatherless” (Wed., March 21, 7 p.m.).

Rebellion at Dawn (Awka Liwen)

Portuguese

Directed by Mariano Aiello and Kristina Hille (Argentina, 2010, 77 min.)

The culmination of a years-long project to cultivate talented young filmmakers from the hillside favelas (slums) of Rio de Janeiro, “5X Favela’s” five short episodes offer a rare glimpse of the vigorous culture emerging from these communities. (EFF)

Eatrip

Landmark’s E Street Cinema Thu., March 15, 7 p.m.

Directed by Yuri Nomura (Japan, 2009, 80 min.)

Freer Gallery of Art Sun., March 11, 2 p.m.

Russian

Mandarin

Khodorkovsky

Japan Information and Culture Center Wed., March 14, 6:30 p.m.

The Secret World of Arrietty (Kari-gurashi no Arietti) Directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi and Gary Rydstrom (Japan, 2010, 95 min.)

The Clock family are four-inch-tall people who live anonymously in another family’s residence, but life changes for the Clocks when their daughter, Arrietty, is discovered. (Japanese and English) Theater TBA Opens Fri., Feb. 17

Korean Anyang, Paradise City (Dasi taeernago sipfiryo, Anyangae) Directed by Park Chan-kyong (South Korea, 2011, 102 min.)

This blend of documentary and fiction journeys through the history that has shaped the city of Anyang, South Korea, from a tragic fire that killed 22 female workers during the 1988 Olympics to the painstaking excavation of a 1,000-year-old temple. (EFF) Freer Gallery of Art Fri., March 16, 7 p.m.

Cyrano Agency Directed by Kim Hyun-seok (South Korea, 2010, 117 min.)

A troupe of poor actors takes inspiration from “Cyrano de Bergerac” and starts a business to help the lovelorn via meticulous surveillance, extreme makeovers and elaborately stage-managed “chance meetings.” Freer Gallery of Art Sun., March 18, 2 p.m.

My Dear Desperado (Nae Kkangpae Gateun Aein) Directed by Kim Kwang-sik (South Korea, 2010, 105 min.)

She’s a recent college graduate; he’s a grouchy gangster. As she struggles to find work and he considers getting out of the crime game, these neighbors in a crummy Seoul apartment building become an adorably odd couple. Freer Gallery of Art Sun., March 25, 2 p.m.

Foxy Festival Directed by Lee Hae-young (South Korea, 2010, 110 min.)

When the police announce a campaign to rid their precinct of sleaze, they run into a

This film tells of the massacres against the indigenous peoples of northern Argentina at the turn of the 20th century in the eternal fight for land and distribution of wealth. (EFF)

Multiple directors (Brazil, 2010, 103 min.)

problem: It seems every citizen has a skeleton in the closet — or, more accurately, a blowup doll or set of handcuffs.

This contemporary Japanese food culture documentary explores our connection to food and to each other, both as an interaction among people and between people and nature. (EFF)

Directed by Wong Kar-wai (Hong Kong, 1997, 96 min.)

Male lovers Tony Leung Chiu Wai and Leslie Cheung leave Hong Kong for Buenos Aires to seek a fresh start, but instead break up and become roommates, but can the former lovers be friends?

This documentary chronicles the true ragsto-riches-to-rags story of Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the former Russian oil oligarch who spoke out against state corruption, only to be arrested and convicted on tax and embezzlement charges. (Russian, English and German) Landmark’s E Street Cinema

AFI Silver Theatre March 2 to 7

Spanish

Polish

Chico & Rita Directed by Fernando Trueba, Javier Mariscal and Tono Errando (Spain/U.K., 2010, 94 min.)

In Darkness (W Ciemnosci)

This epic animated story of love and heartbreak celebrates the music and culture of Cuba as a gifted songwriter and beautiful

Directed by Agnieszka Holland (Poland/Germany/France/Canada, 2011, 145 min.)

Embassy of Argentina Fri., March 16, 6:30 p.m.

The War for Other Media (La Guerra por Otros Medios) Directed by Emilio Cartoy Díaz and Cristian Jure (Argentina, 2010, 74 min.)

Thanks to laptops, speakers, radios, newspapers, video cameras, cell phones, etc., indigenous people have been integrating mass media to strengthen their claims and the recognition of their rights. (EFF)

Directed by Cyril Tuschi (Germany, 2011, 112 min.)

Happy Together (Chun gwong cha sit)

Landmark’s E Street Cinema Opens Fri., March 16

Landmark’s E Street Cinema

5X Favela, Now By Ourselves (Agora Por Nós Mesmos)

www.francophonieDC.org

singer chase their dreams — and each other — across the globe in the 1940s and ’50s.

Embassy of Venezuela Sat., March 24, 6:30 p.m.

Swiss-German Weather Grazers (Wätterschmöcker) Directed by Thomas Horat (Switzerland, 2010, 98 min.)

In central Switzerland, the spry old men who live in the mountains are famous for predicting the weather using the ancient signs of animal behavior, plant growth, winds and clouds — participating in a competition where they are judged by both the accuracy of their forecast and the flourishes in their prose. (EFF) Embassy of Switzerland Mon., March 19, 7 p.m.

from page 36

Film Reviews Swinton’s lead character, gives Ramsay a chance to show off her directorial talents with a mesmerizing visual montage. In a modest New York suburb, Eva Khatchadourian (Swinton) lives what seems to be a tormented life, looking frazzled and unhealthily skinny. She has to scrub red paint off her weathered cottage. A strange woman punches her in a parking lot, to which she doesn’t respond or accept help. She willingly takes Photo: Nicole Rivelli / Oscilloscope Laboratories home eggs cracked by strangers at the supermarket, later picking up shells out of her omelet. When two Tilda Swinton, left, struggles with her sociopathic son (Rocky young men in suits carrying briefcases appear at her Duer) in “We Need to Talk About Kevin.” door, she’s understandably alarmed before they ask to be drowned out by traffic. She exclaims, “Before her what she knows about the afterlife. She laughs, saying, “I’m going straight to hell. you were born, Mommy used to be happy! Now Eternal damnation, the whole thing.” She’s serious. Mommy wakes up every day and wishes she were in France!” Apparently, her teenage son As a 6- to 8-year old, Kevin Kevin (Ezra Miller of We Need to Talk About Kevin (Jasper Newell) has turned into a “Afterschool,” “City Island”) (English; 112 min.; scope) little demon who still wears a has committed some unspeakAMC Georgetown diaper and lacks interest in nearly able crime at his high school. everything, except for a bow and She blames herself, at least in Opens Fri., March 2 arrow set. He’s conniving enough large part, so she willingly ★★★★✩ to show affection to his father, accepts her life suffering as a form of penance. Perhaps if she’d been a better who insists that Kevin is just being a boy who needs space to run around, prompting a move to the submother, a different outcome might have resulted. Flashbacks reveal that Eva is an accomplished urbs. Kevin taunts his mother, frustrating her so much travel writer who’s seen much of the world, as illus- that she throws him up against the wall one day, trated by a scene from the La Tomatina festival in breaking her arm. Eve and Franklin also have a youngValencia, Spain, where the thrown tomatoes look dis- er daughter, Celia (Ashley Gerasimovich), whose turbingly like blood. In Manhattan, she finds herself sweetness only contrasts with Kevin’s increasing unexpectedly pregnant by Franklin (John C. Reilly of creepiness as a teenager. “Carnage,”“Chicago”). Her colicky baby Kevin (Rocky Duer) cries so much that she takes him into the street Ky N. Nguyen is the film reviewer for The Washington Diplomat.

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March 2012

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The Washington Diplomat Page 39

[ around town ]

EVENTS LISTING **Admission is free unless otherwise noted. All information on event venues can be found on The Diplomat Web site at www. washdiplomat.com. Times and locations are subject to change. Unless listed, please call venue for specific event times and hours of operation.

March 24 to June 17

Hokusai: 36 Views of Mount Fuji The most acclaimed print series by Japan’s most famous artist, “Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji” by Katsushika Hokusai (1760– 1849) contains images of worldwide renown, including “The Great Wave.” Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

ART March 1 to May 5

A Thousand and One Faces of Mexico: Masks from the Ruth D. Lechuga Collection Masks have always been an integral part of a society’s rituals and ceremonies. This exhibit displays more than 140 masks from the expansive collection of Ruth D. Lechuga (1920-2004), who traveled around Mexico for 50 years collecting more than 10,000 pieces, including 1,200 masks, which constitute one of the most important folk art collections in Mexico.

Through April 13

Lie of the Land: New Australian Landscapes More than 60 works by 12 Australian artists offer a contemporary take on traditional landscape traditions. “Images of Australian landscapes have long been celebrated internationally,” said Ambassador Kim Beazley. “However these artists re-examine the conventions of the genre to suggest the complex histories that persist beneath picturesque images of gumtrees and golden pastures.” Embassy of Australia

Mexican Cultural Institute

Through April 15

March 5 to June 1

Duva Diva: DuvTeatern’s Glorious Carmen and Photographs by Stefan Bremer

Contemporary Uruguayan Artists To honor Uruguay and the city of Montevideo, site of the 53rd Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Inter-American Development Bank, 13 artists specializing in painting, print, sculpture, mixed media and photography offer a panorama of contemporary Uruguayan creativity, revisiting history and changes that have transformed the nation’s culture, environment and traditions.

These two exhibitions feature beautiful photographs by Stefan Bremer of actors and dancers with Down syndrome and other intellectual disabilities who performed in an unusual performance of Bizet’s “Carmen” last year with the Finnish National Opera in Helsinki (supported by the Embassy of Finland).

Inter-American Development Bank Cultural Center

Migration_Standards

Through March 16

Chronicles of a Portraitist Gérard Rondeau has photographed hundreds of celebrities from all walks of life, ranging from Carla Bruni to Léo Castelli, often for the French newspaper Le Monde. This exhibit features 100 of those portraits depicting such notables as Jean Baudrillard, Henri CartierBresson, Jacques Derrida, Roy Lichtenstein, Joan Mitchell, Patrick Modiano, Jean-Jacques Sempé, Richard Serra, Philippe Starck, and George Steiner. Viewings are by appointment only and can be made by calling (202) 9446400. La Maison Française Through March 23

Natural Archive: Object and Photography Lima-born Cecilia Paredes constructs her art using mostly discarded natural elements and transforming them into casts and weavings with completely new meaning. Embassy of Peru Through March 24

The Wild Horses of Sable Island Photographer Roberto Dutesco reveals the fascinating beauty of a fragile sliver of sand more than 100 miles off the coast of Nova Scotia. Sable Island, known as the “Graveyard of the Atlantic,” is the site of more than 475 shipwrecks since the 17th century. Yet the barren, windswept island is also home to more than 400 wild horses, abandoned there by sailors long ago — a feral herd that has managed to thrive in an unforgiving environment. Embassy of Canada Art Gallery

Page 40

Charles Krause/Reporting Fine Art Through April 15

Realized in cooperation with the art collective bäckerstrasse 4 – plattform für junge kunst curated, this exhibit featuring four artists focuses on the challenges of migration and its structural conditions as a result of redistribution of power and property. Austrian Cultural Forum Through April 27

gute aussichten: young german photography 2011/2012 Photography by seven winners of “gute aussichten 2011/2012,” the eighth annual German competition for graduate photography students, reflect highly diverse aesthetic, formal and conceptual approaches that provide insights into the multifaceted themes that form the focus of young artists’ interests today. Goethe-Institut Through May 6

Picasso’s Drawings, 1890-1921: Reinventing Tradition Through some 55 works, this exhibition presents the dazzling development of Pablo Picasso’s drawings over a 30-year period, from the precocious academic exercises of his youth in the 1890s to the virtuoso works of the early 1920s, including the radical innovations of cubism and collage. National Gallery of Art

THE WASHINGTON DIPLOMAT camera, most previously unpublished, are displayed with 70 paintings and works on paper that the snapshots inspired, revealing fascinating parallels in cropping, lighting and vantage point.

March 2012

designed elaborate structures and decorations, allowing them to experiment with new ideas or encourage city officials to consider new uses of public space. National Gallery of Art

innovative choreography combine to create a breathtaking theater experience. Tickets are $24 to $48. George Mason University Center for the Arts

The Phillips Collection Through May 13

Suprasensorial: Experiments in Light, Color, and Space “Suprasensorial” is the first exhibition to re-evaluate the evolution of the international Light and Space movement through the work of five pivotal Latin American artists. Coinciding with the show, a 360-degree projection by Doug Aitken will illuminate, animate and transform the Hirshhorn’s entire façade. Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Through May 20

Ñew York Works by outstanding young Latin American and Spanish artists residing in New York City pay tribute to a long-lost artistic exchange and revive innovative communication channels between Latin and Spanish plastic and visual artists, reflecting on mobility in an era of widespread displacement where both global and local barriers are broken down. Organization of American States Art Museum of the Americas Through May 20

Shakespeare’s Sisters: Voices of English and European Women Writers, 1500-1700 This exhibition explores those women who were writing during Shakespeare’s time, reimagining the “conversations” of these early women writers — with each other as members of families or groups, with the Bible, with spiritual and secular ideas, and with male writers of the time — in hopes of expanding their overshadowed voices. Folger Shakespeare Library

Through July 29

Royalists to Romantics: Women Artists from the Louvre, Versailles, and Other French National Collections The National Museum of Women in the Arts celebrates its 25th anniversary with the first exhibition to explore the life and work of women artists in the time of the French Revolution with more than 75 rarely seen works by 35 artists.

Thu., March 8, 7 p.m.

Dragons, Nagas, and Creatures of the Deep

International Women’s Day with Dr. Domnica Radulescu

In the Spirit of the East Asian calendar’s Year of the Dragon, this exhibition highlights objects drawn from cultures as diverse as the ancient Mediterranean world, imperial China and contemporary South America, portraying dragons as everything from fire-breathing beasts to beneficent water gods.

Cleveland Park Neighborhood Library

The Textile Museum

DANCE Fri., March 2, 8 p.m.

Compañía Olga Pericet Part of Flamenco Festival 2012, Olga Pericet is one of flamenco’s most exciting new talents — a young, diminutive yet powerful dancer whose work spans traditional flamenco to contemporary and Spanish classical dance. Tickets are $35 to $65. GW Lisner Auditorium Sat., March 3, 8 p.m.

Embarking on its first U.S. tour, Ballet Folklórico de Antioquia shares the richness and diversity of Colombian culture through authentic music, ritualistic dance and physical theater accented with scintillating costumes. Tickets are $23 to $46.

Alberto Schommer: Portraits and Scenarios Alberto Schommer, one of Spain’s most prominent photographers, has pioneered a path challenging conventional forms, including a series of psychological portraits, always guided under the influence of the oeuvre of Irving Penn and William Klein. Part of the “Spain arts & culture” series (www.spainculture.us). Embassy of Spain

Through May 6

Through July 29

Snapshot: Painters and Photography, Bonnard to Vuillard

From the Library: The Fleeting Structures of Early Modern Europe

Approximately 200 snapshots made by renowned post-impressionist artists like Pierre Bonnard and Edouard Vuillard using the new technology of the Kodak handheld

In early modern Europe, state visits, coronations and weddings were among the occasions that gave cities a chance to stage lavish productions in which artists and architects

Ed Smith, Smithsonian staff biologist at the Amazonia department of the National Zoo, leads a virtual tour from the high Andean headwaters downstream over 4,000 miles to the Atlantic Ocean. Tickets are $40; for information, visit www.smithsonianassociates.org.

Through Jan. 6

Ballet Folklórico de Antioquia

Through July 6

Amazonian Odyssey

S. Dillon Ripley Center

The Style that Ruled the Empires: Russia, Napoleon, and 1812

Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens

Tue., March 6, 7 p.m.

National Museum of Women in the Arts

Through June 2

Paintings, porcelain, glassware, metal ware, attire, Napoleonic armor and other items commemorate the bicentennial of Russia’s triumph over the French army in 1812, which dealt an arresting blow to Napoleon and his pursuit of European conquest while also igniting a collective Russian pride and production of decorative arts that persists today.

DISCUSSIONS

George Mason University Center for the Arts Sat., March 3, 8 p.m.

Compañía Manuela Carrasco Known as the “Queen of Gypsy Flamenco,” the highly acclaimed dance performs “Suspiro Flamenco,” a show that offers flamenco in its purest, simplest and most powerful form. Tickets are $35 to $65. GW Lisner Auditorium Wed., March 7, 8 p.m.

Compañía Rafaela Carrasco Seville’s Rafaela Carrasco, one of the most important flamenco choreographers of the younger generation, infuses new energy into a selection of popular Spanish songs originally recorded by Federico Garcia Lorca in 1931. Tickets are $35 to $55. GW Lisner Auditorium Sun., March 18, 4 p.m.

Tao: The Art of the Drum In this new production, athletic bodies, vibrant costumes, explosive Taiko drumming and

Celebrate International Women’s Day with Domnica Radulescu, chair of the women’s and gender studies program at Washington and Lee University, as she discusses her books “Train to Trieste” and “Black Sea Twilight” (supported by the Embassy of Romania). Tue., March 13, 5:30 p.m.

Occupy Rousseau: Inequality and Social Justice Genevan philosopher and writer JeanJacques Rousseau believed government should be for and by the people, a concept that sparked the American and French Revolutions. To celebrate this iconic thinker on his 300th birthday, the Embassy of Switzerland presents an international panel to discuss how his principles from the Age of Enlightenment can be applied to contemporary social issues. On March 12, the embassy also screens “La Faute à Rousseau (Blame it on Rousseau!),” a collection of short films, documentaries, video essays and animation. For information, visit www.francophoniedc.org. Library of Congress Jefferson Building Thu., March 15, 6:45 p.m.

The Treasure Below: Excavating at the Ancient Port of Constantinople Ufuk Kocabas, director of Istanbul University’s Yenikapi Shipwrecks Project, tells the amazing story of a construction project to create Istanbul’s most important transportation hub that turned into a major archaeological treasure trove of 40,000 artifacts. Tickets are $20; for information, visit www.smithsonianassociates.org. S. Dillon Ripley Center Thu., March 29, 6 p.m.

For a Global Equality The second debate of the French-American Global Forum addresses the new model of social contract for the 21st century and how American, French, and European populations will react to new economic constraints. The discussion also celebrates the release of the magazine Le Monde Diplomatique in the U.S. with “Le Monde Diplomatique from 1954 to 2012,” an exhibition of front pages over the past 58 years. For information, visit www.francedc.org. Alliance Française in Penn Quarter

The Washington Diplomat

March 2012

FESTIVALS Sun., March 4, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Persian New Year Visitors can dance, play and feast their way into the Persian New Year at the Freer and Sackler galleries’ fourth annual Nowruz celebration, offering free entertainment and activities for all ages as well as traditional food, all centered around newly installed galleries devoted to the art of ancient Iran. Arthur M. Sackler Gallery March 6 to April 15

Francophonie 2012 Cultural Festival This annual celebration of the Frenchspeaking world ushers in a slew of events, from literary salons, culinary tastings and concerts, to exhibitions, film and theater. March highlights include: the Grande Fête de la Francophonie kickoff extravaganza featuring more than 35 embassies showcasing their culture and cuisine (March 23); literary salons by Congo-Brazzaville-born author Alain Mabanckou (March 9) and French writer Sylvie Germain (March 20); a concert by Maria de Barros of Cape Verde combining the sounds of Africa, Brazil, the Caribbean, France and Spain (March 22); as well as the exhibit “Promenade” by Croatian-French painter Davor Vrankic at the French Embassy (March 21-April 15). For complete details, visit www. francophoniedc.org. Various locations March 20 to April 27

National Cherry Blossom Festival A century after Japan’s 1912 gift of 3,000 cherry blossom trees to Washington, D.C., the National Cherry Blossom Festival presents an unprecedented citywide celebration of this enduring sign of friendship on its 100th anniversary, with five weeks of events ranging from workshops and exhibits to seminars and parties. For information, visit www.nationalcherryblossomfestival.org. Various locations Thu., March 22, 6 p.m.

Thomas Edison First International Night Thomas Edision High School holds its first International Night featuring dance performances, food tastings and dress demonstrations from various cultures around the world. For information, call Amy Johnson at (301) 962-5994 or Amy_C_Johnson@mcpsmd.org. Thomas Edison High School

Events Highlight

Embassy Chefs Dial Up Heat World-class chefs from Washing The public will get a chance to pick ton’s own embassy community serve its favorites on March 8 at the Ronald up a sizzling plate of competition in the Reagan Building and International fourth edition of Cultural Tourism DC’s Trade Center, where guests can sample Embassy Chef Challenge. hors d’oeuvres by embassy chefs and The annual competition has evolved bid on a silent auction featuring items into a popular local showcase of the steeped in international flavor, includcity’s international ing a trip to the culinary talent, benBahamas and tea with Tickets are efiting the free proambassadors. $250; for grams and events Chef Lars Beese of information, please visit provided by Cultural the Danish Embassy www.CulturalTourismDC.org. Tourism DC, a nontook top honors at last profit organization year’s Embassy Chef dedicated to promoting the arts and Challenge, hosting a private cook-off culture of Washington, D.C. for this year’s contestants on Feb. 12. A panel of celebrity judges and The preliminary “Top Chef”-style commore than 400 guests will judge dishpetition challenged each chef to create es from chefs at the embassies of the a main course in two hours with an Bahamas, China, Georgia, Iraq, ingredient revealed in advance — Kazakhstan, Korea, Morocco, Norway, beets — plus a basket of surprise Spain, Sri Lanka and other nations. components drawn from Danish cuiAmong the judges this year are Tim sine. Scores from the cook-off will be Carman, food reporter for the combined with the second round of Washington Post; chef Carla Hall, cojudging at the Ronald Reagan Building host “The Chew, Top Chef All-Stars to determine the Judge’s Choice Award Finalist”; and Warren Brown, founder of winner. Guests at the benefit vote for CakeLove. the People’s Choice Award.

to learn

the years to support cancer research and direct service programs to medically underserved communities. Tickets are $500 or $1,000 for priority seating; for information, call (703) 519-2103 or email linda.chastain@preventcancer.org. National Building Museum Fri., March 16, 6:30 p.m.

THIS for Diplomat Spring 2012 Soiree Travel the globe in an evening with THIS for Diplomat, the hospitality and information service for the diplomatic community, with the group’s annual spring soiree, featuring acclaimed jazz singer Lena Seikaly performing with the Burnett Thompson Trio, international hors d’oeuvres and drinks, as well as a silent auction. For information, call (202) 232-3002 or email this@meridian.org. Meridian International Center

The Music of Budapest, Prague and Vienna

MUSIC

The Kennedy Center

GALAS Fri., March 9, 7 p.m.

The Prevent Cancer Foundation 18th Annual Spring Gala The theme for this year’s Prevent Cancer Foundation Spring Gala is “Modern+Majestic=Switzerland,” featuring honored patrons, Manuel Sager, the Swiss ambassador, and his wife Christine. This renowned event attracts more than 900 guests and was named among the top 31 charitable benefits by BizBash Magazine, having raising more than $18.5 million over

An angel and a demon retell the story of creation from their perspectives in this farcical new play. Tickets are $30. Synetic Theater at Crystal City Through March 4

Red At the height of his career, Mark Rothko is struggling with a series of grand-scale paintings for the elite Four Seasons restaurant, and when his new assistant challenges his artistic integrity, Rothko must confront his own demons. Please call for ticket information. Arena Stage March 6 to April 15

Brother Russia In a desolate Siberian potato field, a comically fourth-rate Russian theater troupe sets up its ratty tents and wows the local farmers with rock-fueled adaptations of great Russian figures, focusing one night on the hypnotic mystic Rasputin. Tickets start at $63. Signature Theatre Through March 11

Astro Boy and the God of Comics Onstage drawing meets the 1960s dream of the future in this story of Japanese cartoonist Osamu Tezuka and his most famous creation: Astro Boy, a crime-fighting robot. Tickets are $38 to $43. The Studio Theatre

Sun., March 11, 4 p.m.

Vienna Boys Choir

prize winner in the 2008-09 Young Concert Artists International Auditions. Tickets are $100, including Bulgarian buffet dinner and wine. For information, visit www.embassyseries.org. Embassy of Bulgaria Sat., March 24, 8 p.m.

Angelique Kidjo A Grammy-winning vocalist deemed “Africa’s premier diva” by Time magazine, Angelique Kidjo is known for her dynamic and uplifting music. Tickets are $25 to $45. GW Lisner Auditorium

The world’s pre-eminent children’s choir has enchanted audiences with its purity of tone, distinct charm and diverse repertoire of Austrian folk songs, waltzes, pop songs and medieval chants. Tickets are $23 to $46.

THEATER

George Mason University Center for the Arts

Dormant passions are revived with the arrival of a lector who reads chapters of “Anna Karenina” at a 1920s cigar factory in Ybor City, Florida, where cigars are still rolled by hand. Tickets are $34 or $38 (in Spanish with English surtitles).

Fri., March 16, 8 p.m.

The Chieftains with Paddy Moloney Founded by Paddy Moloney in 1962, the sixtime Grammy-winning group the Chieftains is recognized for bringing traditional Irish music to the world with a style that is as exhilarating as it is definitive. Tickets are $28 to $65. Kennedy Center Concert Hall Fri., March 23, 7:30 p.m.

Bella Hristova, Violin Ieva Jokubaviciute, Piano The Embassy Series presents a concert of Schumann, Tower, Janáček and Brahms by Bulgarian violinist Bella Hristova, the first

Through March 4

Ana en el trópico / Anna in the Tropics

GALA Hispanic Theatre Through March 4

The Gaming Table The thrills of the gaming table stylishly play out against the eccentricities of English manners in Susanna Centlivre’s comedy as an independent widow with a penchant for gambling leads a nightly card game, which bankrupts some and entertains all. Tickets are $30 to $65.

You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown Charles Schulz’s Peanuts gang is brought to life in this family-friendly musical, directed and choreographed by Stephen Nachamie. Tickets start at $26. Olney Theatre Center March 27 to April 29

Strange Interlude Heartbroken over her adored fiancé’s death, Nina engages in a series of sordid affairs before marrying a man she does not love. Months later, pregnant with her husband’s child, she learns a horrifying secret about his family, setting off a chain of events that spans two decades (part of the Eugene O’Neill Festival). Tickets are $20 to $100. The Shakespeare Theatre Through April 1

New Jerusalem: The Interrogation of Baruch de Spinoza at Talmud Torah Congregation: Amsterdam, July 27, 1656 With cerebral language and wry humor, acclaimed playwright David Ives gives young philosopher Baruch de Spinoza — who faces excommunication from the Jewish community for his subversive new ideas — a chance to defend himself in a courtroom clash between religion and rationalism. Tickets are $25 to $60. Through April 8

This wicked satire follows a group of six ambitious Americans on a quest for success at the dawn of the Obama age — and the price they must pay to achieve it. Tickets start at $30.

Sucker Punch

Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company

The Studio Theatre

In 1980s London, two black teenagers try to box their way into fame, fortune and a better life, but will they become champions or sell-outs? Tickets are $35 to $60.

Through March 15

Washington National Opera: Così fan tutte In Mozart’s game of love and seduction, two young men wager that their fiancées will remain faithful, even when tempted — and

For a complete list of events, please visit our Web site at www.washdiplomat.com.

CULTURE GUIDE

Schubert Uncorked

Georgetown University Gaston Hall

Through March 18

Civilization (all you can eat)

Sat., March 31, 8 p.m.

Join PostClassical Ensemble and the virtuosic bass trombonist David Taylor for a startling re-contextualization of a revered composer, Franz Schubert, who defied categorization, with two newly commissioned world premieres that seize on the harrowing existential content of his music. Tickets are $25.

Kennedy Center Opera House

Washington DCJCC Theater J

Through March 11

Through March 29

Through concerts, theater and lectures, the Kennedy Center, under the guidance of Music Director Christoph Eschenbach, explores the current of classical and romantic music and culture that sprang from the cities of Budapest, Prague and Vienna, with performances by the National Symphony Orchestra, Washington National Opera, Vienna Philharmonic, Prague Philharmonia and others.

to prove it, they decide to do the tempting themselves. Tickets are $55 to $300.

Through March 4

Genesis Reboot

YOUR

The New Culture Guide Ads Available in Three Sizes

HERE 301.933.3552

On March 8 The Competition Will Heat Up

More than a dozen embassy chefs will dish up their best international cuisine. Chefs from the embassies of China, Hungry, Japan, Spain, Morocco and others will take part in a friendly cooking competition.

Plan Your Entire Weekend.

www.washdiplomat.com TO ADVERTISE IN THIS SECTION Contact Sales Department at: email: sales@washdiplomat.com phone: (301) 933-3552 fax: (301) 949-0065

Folger Shakespeare Library

March 2012

The Embassy Chef Challenge Thursday, March 8, 2012, 7:30 to 10:00 pm The Ronald Reagan Building And International Trade Center For more information or to purchase tickets visit www.CulturalTourismDC.org or call Elizabeth Goldberg at 202-638-8363.

The Washington Diplomat Page 41

DIPLOMATIC SPOTLIGHT

The Washington Diplomat

March 2012

Green Partnership

Photos: gail scott

Photo: Royal dutch embassy

Dozens of ambassadors, diplomats and other D.C. and U.S. government officials came out to sign a “Neighbors in Sustainability” pledge — coordinated by the State Department’s DC Greening Embassies Forum — the first collaborative initiative of its kind to help make D.C. the greenest city in the country.

Photo: Royal dutch embassy

Ambassador of Slovenia Roman Kirn, left, and Consul General at the Swiss Embassy Eduard Krall sign a pledge to make their embassies and diplomatic operations more sustainable.

New Pakistani Ambassador

D.C. Mayor Vincent C. Gray, left, and Ambassador of the Netherlands Renée Jones-Bos host a pledge-signing ceremony in which more than 40 embassies and international organizations promised to make their buildings and operations more sustainable. The ceremony was preceded by a “Neighbors in Sustainability” workshop on topics such as how embassies and the District work together to make storm water management more sustainable.

Ambassador of Liechtenstein Claudia Fritsche, left, and Chargé d’Affaires of the Croatian Embassy Vice Skraĉić attend the green partnership pledge-signing ceremony held at the Dutch Embassy.

Ambassador of Latvia Andrejs Pildegovics, left, joins Ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago Neil Parsan at the green partnership pledge-signing ceremony held at the Dutch Embassy.

Ambassador of the Netherlands Renée Jones-Bos, left, and Ambassador of Mexico Arturo Sarukhan sign a pledge to make their embassies more eco-friendly in a ceremony held at the Dutch Embassy on the occasion of its LEED Silver Certification, making it the second embassy in Washington, after Finland, to receive a LEED Certification.

From left, wife of the Turkish ambassador Fügen Tan, recently appointed Ambassador of Pakistan Sherry Rehman, wife of the Monaco ambassador Ellen Noghès, and hostess Shaista Mahmood attend a welcome lunch for the new Pakistani ambassador at the Mahmood residence.

From left, U.S. special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan Marc Grossman, Ambassador of Turkey Namik Tan, former Ambassador of Afghanistan Said Tayeb Jawad, and host Ray Mahmood attend a welcome lunch for the new Pakistani ambassador at the Mahmood residence.

Photos: gail scott

From left, Nadeem Hussain, president and chief executive officer of Tameer Microfinance Bank, and his wife Sherry Rehman, the new ambassador of Pakistan, are welcomed to a luncheon hosted by Shaista and Ray Mahmood at their residence in Virginia.

Malaysian Farewell

From left, Ambassador of Liechtenstein Claudia Fritsche; Mildred Patterson, the wife of special envoy Marc Grossman; and Meryl Chertoff, director of the Aspen Institute’s Justice and Society Program, attend a welcome lunch for the new Pakistani ambassador.

From left, US-ASEAN Business Council President Alexander C. Feldman, Ambassador of Malaysia Jamaludin Jarjis, and Vice President of Global Public Policy for Oracle Joseph Alhadeff attend a farewell reception for Ambassador Jarjis.

From left, Ambassador of Bangladesh Akramul Qader, Ambassador of Turkey Namik Tan, and Ambassador of Fiji Winston Thompson attend a farewell reception for Ambassador of Malaysia Jamaludin Jarjis.

Ambassador of Malaysia Jamaludin Jarjis, left, receives a parting gift from Thomas J. Reckford, president of the MalaysiaAmerica Society, at the ambassador’s farewell reception held at the Malaysian Embassy. Photos: gail scott

Page 42

Photo: Royal dutch embassy

Recently appointed Ambassador of Ecuador Nathalie Cely Suárez signs a pledge to pursue sustainability initiatives at her embassy in the areas of transportation, energy, water conservation, waste reduction, eco-purchasing and other green efforts.

Ambassador of South Africa Ebrahim Rasool, left, joins Ambassador of Cameroon Joseph Foe-Atangana at a ceremony commemorating a new partnership between the diplomatic community and the District to support the environmental and sustainability goals of the nation’s capital, which ranks among the top 10 greenest cities in the nation.

Twelve-term Democratic Con gressman Eni Faleomavaega of American Samoa praises “Am bassador J.J.” during the farewell reception for Ambassador of Malaysia Jamaludin Jarjis.

Ambassador of the Philippines Jose L. Cuisia Jr., left, joins and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for South and Southeast Asia Robert Scher at a farewell reception for Ambassador of Malaysia Jamaludin Jarjis.

The Washington Diplomat

March 2012

Honoring Václav Havel

Photo: gail scott

‘Chance of a Lifetime’ at Liechtenstein From left, Emilie Benešová Brzezinski, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Czech Embassy Jaroslav Zajicek, and Ambassador of Hungary Gyorgy Szapary listen as former National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski, far right, gives the eulogy at a special memorial service honoring former Czech President Václav Havel, who died Dec. 18 at the age of 75.

Jan Vokál, bishop of Hradec Králové, presides over a memorial service at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in honor of Václav Havel, a playwright, political dissident and the Czech Republic’s first president following the Velvet Revolution.

Arab League Farewell

From left, Ambassador of Switzerland Manuel Sager, Ambassador of Liechtenstein Claudia Fritsche, Christine Sager, and Dennis Wholey of PBS attend a reception hosted by Ambassador Fritsche at her residence in honor of Wholey’s new book “The Chance of a Lifetime: An Amazing Super Bowl Story.”

At his farewell reception, Arab League Ambassador Hussein Hassouna, left, joins his old friend, U.S. diplomat Jack Covey, who has known Hassouna since the 1980s, when Covey was deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo.

New Turkish Office

From left, President of the Turkish Coalition of America G. Lincoln McCurdy, associate professor of Turkish at Georgetown University Sylvia Onder, Ambassador of Turkey Namik Tan, and Executive Director of the Institute of Turkish Studies Sinan Ciddi attend a reception celebrating the official opening of the new office for the Turkish Coalition of America (TCA) and the Turkish Cultural Foundation (TCF).

Photos: gail scott

From left, Seeds of Peace Cofounding Vice President Christine Covey; reception hosts Yasmine Askalani and her husband Omar Ghorbal; Christine Wisner, wife of former American Ambassador to Egypt Frank Wisner; and departing Arab League Ambassador Hussein Hassouna attend a farewell reception for the Hassounas held at the Ghorbals’ residence.

From left, wife of the Jordanian Embassy deputy chief of mission Kirsty Hammoud, Nevine Hassouna, Royada Abou Khatwa, and Reem Tannous attend a farewell reception for Nevine and her husband, Arab League Ambassador Hussein Hassouna, who are leaving their Washington post after 10 years.

Tunisian Symphony

Monte Carlo at NMWA

Photos: gail scott

Ellen Noghès, wife of the ambassador of Monaco, second from left, welcomes guests Rana Karjawalli, Mary Clark and Gamila Karjawalli to “An Evening in Monte Carlo,” a gala celebrating the 25th anniversary of the National Museum for Women in the Arts (NMWA).

Labor Meetings

Wife of the Mexican ambassador Veronica Valencia-Sarukhan, left, joins wife of the Peruvian ambassador María Verónica Forsyth at “An Evening in Monte Carlo” celebrating the National Museum for Women in the Arts.

Iranian Revolution From left, Ambassador of Zimbabwe Machivenyika Mapuranga, Ambassador of Cameroon Joseph FoeAtangana, and Director of the Iranian Interests Section in Washington Mostafa Rahmani attend a dinner reception at the Interests Section in honor of the 33rd anniversary of the Islamic Revolution in Iran.

Participants in the Child Labor Cocoa Coordinating Committee meeting at the Department of Labor included Marcia Eugenio of the department’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs, Melane Rose Boyce representing the industry, Ambassador of Ghana Daniel Ohene Agyekum, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Deputy Secretary Seth Harris and Rep. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.).

Photos: u.s. department of labor

From left, Secretary of Labor at the Indian Ministry of Labor and Employment Mrutyunjay Sarangi, U.S. Deputy Undersecretary for International Labor Affairs Sandra Polaski, Ambassador of India Nirupama Rao, U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis, Indian Minister of Labor and Employment Mallikarjun Kharge, and Director-General, Employees’ State Insurance Corporation C.S. Kedar attend a memorandum of understanding signing between Secretary Solis and Minister Kharge at the Department of Labor.

Photo: washington brown lloyd james

From left, Minister Counselor at the Colombian Embassy Alfonso Cuellar, Colombian Vice Minister of Labor Relations and Inspection David Luna, U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis, Minister of Labor of Colombia Rafael Pardo, U.S. Deputy Undersecretary for International Affairs Sandra Polaski, and Ambassador of Colombia Gabriel Silva attend a meeting between Colombian officials and Labor Secretary Solis.

March 2012

Photos: gail scott

From left, former U.S. Ambassador to Tunisia Walter Cutler and his wife Didi congratulate Tunisian Minister of Finance Jaloul Ayed, who is also a composer, on his symphony “Hannibal Barca,” which was performed at the Kennedy Center to mark the first anniversary of the Tunisian revolution.

Ambassador of Tunisia Mohamed Salah Tekaya and his wife Kinza attend the Kennedy Center concert celebrating the first anniversary of Tunisia’s revolution.

The Washington Diplomat Page 43

from page 9

Iran

them from acquiring them, and nothing we’ve done has slowed their progress, so we’ll have to either accept the unacceptable or exercise our last remaining option,” Kroenig said in an interview with The Diplomat.“So I think my position is just an articulation of a logical continuation of where our policy has been and where it’s going.” Gary Sick, a professor at Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs who served on the National Security Council under Presidents Ford, Carter and Reagan, believes that Kroenig’s analysis downplays the risks of a confrontation. “There is no such thing as a surgical strike and there never will be,” he said. “Iran could kick out the inspectors, go underground, reconstitute its program, and go for a nuclear weapon. Then the population rallies around the regime and we’re left with no eyes and ears on the ground. Then the ‘least bad’ option becomes, ‘Let’s send in some troops.’” Sick said that a war with Iran could be “100 times worse” than Iraq, because of the size of the country, the way the population would mobilize, and the defense capabilities and guerilla tactics they could launch to disrupt oil supplies and throw fragile economies into recession. Kroenig, 34, noted that he took no position on the Iraq War because he was a first-year graduate student at the time and wasn’t following the situation closely. He has never been to Iran and said he doubts he’ll be invited after the publication of his article. Still, he believes it is important for Americans to debate the Iran issue honestly and consider the use of force. He also echoed what Defense Secretary Leon Panetta reportedly suggested: that the possibility of an Israeli strike on Iran continues to increase heading into 2012 as Iran’s “capability continues to evolve.” But John Ghazvinian, a historian who is working on a book on the history of U.S.-Iranian relations, doubts that Israel or the United States will conduct a military strike on Iran anytime soon. “The likelihood of military action against Iran is almost zero,” claimed Ghazvinian, who was born in Iran and has conducted recent field research there.“It would be such a poor decision that I can’t imagine it being taken quite frankly. From the Israeli perspective, there’s a strategic advantage to ensuring that the think tank consensus is that an Israeli attack on Iran is imminent and the only way to prevent it is to ratchet up pressure on Iran. But I believe that for Israel, this type of pressure on Iran is itself, in fact, the end game.” Walt argues that Israel wants to keep the world’s focus on Iran, in part to distract from the stalled peace process with the Palestinians. He believes an attack on Iran would help rally support

Photo: U.S. Navy / MCSN David L. Smart

Aircraft line the flight deck of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz as the guided-missile cruiser USS Princeton leads the carrier through the Strait of Hormuz in 2007. U.S. aircraft carriers have increasingly traversed the critical oil artery amid heightening tensions with Iran, which in response has held a series of military drills in the narrow waterway.

around the regime and that patient diplomacy and sanctions are the best way to deal with Tehran. Ledeen contends that this approach has failed miserably. “We’ve been trying that for 32 years going on 33,” said Ledeen, who advocates supporting a revolution in Iran. “At what point do you say,‘They don’t want to make peace with us.They hate us.They want to destroy us.’ You see them in the streets chanting ‘Death to America’ — what do you think they mean? Look at Iran and how they treat their people.That’s what they’d like to do to us — subject us to radical Shiite tyranny, force rules on us like boys and girls can’t walk down the street together, women being eliminated from authority, segregating schools and the rest.” Sick counters that the notion of Iran as that sort of a global power is laughable.“If you really think that Iran is capable of imposing social restrictions on the United States, you’re turning them into something infinitely greater than they are,” he said. Walt adds that it’s the neoconservative approach that has failed, not patient diplomacy.“They’ve been beating this drum for a decade and Iran has continued to move closer [to nuclear power]. So this idea that squeezing Iran and threatening it is the way to convince them not to get a nuclear deterrent doesn’t seem to be working particularly well.” To that end, Suzanne Maloney of the Brookings Institution argues that putting the squeeze on Iran could backfire.“The Obama administration’s new sanctions signal the demise of the paradigm that had guided U.S. Iran policymaking since the 1979 revolution: the com-

bination of pressure and persuasion,” she wrote in Foreign Affairs. “Moreover, the decision to outlaw contact with Iran’s central bank puts the United States’ tactics and its long-standing objective — a negotiated end to Iran’s nuclear ambitions — fundamentally at odds. Indeed, the United States cannot hope to bargain with a country whose economy it is trying to disrupt and destroy. As severe sanctions devastate Iran’s economy, Tehran will surely be encouraged to double down on its quest for the ultimate deterrent. So, the White House’s embrace of open-ended pressure means that it has backed itself into a policy of regime change, something Washington has little ability to influence.” Yet Ilan Berman, vice president of the American Foreign Policy Council (AFPC) and a member of Newt Gingrich’s national security team, says there’s nothing wrong with pushing for regime change in Iran, though he doesn’t advocate military action. Speaking for AFPC and not on behalf of Gingrich, he said engagement with Iran was a bad idea. “The Soviets were rational, the Soviets didn’t believe in the next life, so they wanted to live in this one,” he said.“There are very troubling signs that there is a vocal minority in Iran that wants to egg on a confrontation with potentially disastrous consequences. A good example would be an Ayatollah Mohammad Taqi MesbahYazdi, the spiritual leader of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. He talks a lot about the need for a final confrontation with the West to herald the coming of the hidden imam, the 12th imam. It sounds crazy to us but we ignore this stuff at our peril.” Gingrich himself has expressed similar concerns, recently warning: “You think about an Iranian nuclear weapon. You think about the dangers, to Cleveland, or to Columbus, or to Cincinnati, or to New York,” he said.“Remember what it felt like on 9/11 when 3,100 Americans were killed. Now imagine an attack where you add two zeros. And it’s 300,000 dead. Maybe a half-million wounded. This is a real danger.This is not science fiction.” Walt is among those who doubt Iran’s leaders would risk national suicide by launching a nuclear strike on Israel — let alone the United States, a capability it lacks — knowing it would also hit Arab populations and invite an annihilating counterattack from Israel. He also believes such doomsday warnings about Iran have the effect of making a conflict seem inevitable. “If you keep talking about military action enough, people get used to the idea,” he said.“But constantly beating the drums for war with Iran is exactly the way to convince them that a nuclear capability is something they need. If you keep threatening another country, of course they’re going to figure out a way if they can deter you from taking military action. Nuclear weapons are a good way to do that.”

Dave Seminara is an award-winning freelance photojournalist and former diplomat based in Northern Virginia.

from page 18

Delaware

SIDEBAR

the United States.” Abroad, however, there are ways to circumvent banking supervision. In congressional testimony in 2009, Jennifer Shasky Calvery, then senior counsel to the deputy attorney general at the Justice Department, said criminals were increasingly opening bank accounts for their U.S.-based shell companies in offshore jurisdictions with less rigorous customer identification requirements than in the United States. These companies, she added, then gained access to the U.S. financial system via banking relationships with U.S. financial institutions. Heather Lowe, legal counsel and director of government affairs at the Washington-based group Global Financial Integrity, warned of misconceptions of U.S.-based companies abroad. “That’s one of the things that makes it so dangerous,” she said. “You get that patina of respectability by using an American company when in fact an American company is no more transparent than any company anywhere else in the world.” In 2006, the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) found the United States to be noncompliant with aspects of its international antimoney laundering recommendations linked to beneficial ownership. In February of this year, FATF published a revised set of recommendations with the aim of cracking down on financial crimes more effectively. But the group Global Financial Integrity said

Shell, Shelf and Other Jargon

Page 44

In January, Delaware issued guidelines barring registered incorporation agents listed on its website from marketing or promoting shell companies, aged shelf companies or shelf registrations, according to Richard Geisenberger, director of the Delaware Division of Corporations. What do these terms mean? In an advisory to financial institutions, the Treasury Department defined shell companies as “non-publicly traded corporations, limited liability companies (LLCs) and trusts that typically have no physical presence (other than a mailing address) and generate little to no independent economic value.” While used around the world for legitimate purposes, they also have become “popular tools for money launderers,” it said in a separate threat assessment. According to the Better Business Bureau, shelf companies refer to shell companies that are created, kept largely inactive or put on a

the changes did not go far enough. “The new standards do not require the disclosure of the true ‘beneficial owners’ of corporate entities when they are formed but make that an optional approach, thereby leaving intact one of the major loopholes used by financial criminals to anonymously launder their money,” the group

shelf to “season” before being sold to those wishing to start a company without going through all the procedures of creating a new one. Shelf companies are usually formed in lowtax, low-regulation states. Some are advertised as having established lines of credit and are typically sold off for their strong credit ratings. That in turn is often the result of a clever sleight of hand, as Doug Broten, president of the Better Business Bureau of Central California, told BusinessWeek’s Karen E. Klein. “So someone sets up a whole bunch of corporations in another state,” he explained, “and starts billing in between all of them. So over time they show income and expenses, and they are paying their bills on time. They’re not real businesses, but eventually they look like they’re established, credit-worthy companies.” — Veronika Oleksyn

said in a statement. International crooks have certainly benefitted from U.S. shell companies. One prominent example is Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer dubbed the “Merchant of Death” who was convicted on conspiracy charges late last year in New York. “It is unacceptable that Mr. Bout was able to

set up shell corporations in three of our states and use them in illicit activities without ever being asked who owned those corporations,” Levin said in his August remarks. In Austria, prosecutors are investigating a highprofile corruption case involving a former finance minister. The probe centers around the Liechtenstein account of a Delaware LLC that has been dissolved and that documents leaked to local media indicate was used to obscure the money trail for a privatization deal. But investigations, especially those with an international component, don’t always bear much fruit due to a lack of data from the United States. Frustrations often run high among foreign governments whose requests for legal assistance linked to U.S.-based shell companies aren’t honored — largely because there’s no information to give them or they’re not given much priority, said Jack Blum, a lawyer who has worked extensively on the issue and who is a member of the Tax Justice Network. “I’ve talked to foreign law enforcement people who say, ‘Yes, we’ve requested information from the U.S. but it seems to go into a kind of black hole when it gets here,’” he said. That doesn’t do much to foster good relations. “This problem not only damages our reputation,” Shasky Calvery told lawmakers, “but is also counterproductive to our efforts to join with foreign counterparts in a global offensive against organized crime and terrorism.” Veronika Oleksyn is a freelance writer in Washington, D.C.

The Washington Diplomat

March 2012

AROUNDtheWORLD

THE WASHINGTON DIPLOMAT

March 2012

HOLIDAYS ANDorrA March 14: constitution day

CAMBoDiA March 8: international Women’s day

ANGoLA March 8: international Women’s day

CENTrAL AFriCAN rEPuBLiC March 29: Anniversary of the death of President B. Boganda

ArMENiA March 8: international Women’s day AZErBAiJAN March 8: international Women’s day BANGLADESh March 26: independence and national day BELAruS March 8: international Women’s day BELiZE March 9: Baron Bliss day BoSNiA and hErZEGoviNA March 1: independence day

CoLoMBiA March 19: San José day CyPruS March 25: greek national day EriTrEA March 8: international Women’s day ESToNiA March 14: native language day EThioPiA March 2: Victory of Adwa day GABoN March 12: renovation day

independence day GuiNEA-BiSSAu March 8: international Women’s day huNGAry March 15: national day irAN March 20: nowruz irELAND March 17: St. Patrick’s day iSrAEL March 7-8: Purim JAPAN March 20: Vernal equinox day KAZAKhSTAN March 8: international Women’s day March 20: nauryz KorEA, rEPuBLiC oF March 1: independence Movement day

LESoTho March 11: Moshoeshoe’s day LiBEriA March 12: Memorial day March 15: J.J. robert’s Birthday LiEChTENSTEiN March 19: St. Joseph’s day LiThuANiA March 11: restoration of independence of lithuania MADAGASCAr March 29: Memorial day MALAwi March 5: Martyrs’ day MALTA March 19: St. Joseph’s day March 31: Freedom day MArShALL iSLANDS March 1: Memorial day and nuclear Victims’ remembrance day

BuLGAriA March 3: national day

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BurKiNA FASo March 8: international Women’s day

GhANA March 6: independence day

KyrGyZSTAN March 8: international Women’s day March 20: nooruz

MAuriTiuS March 12: national day

BurMA (MyANMAr) March 27: Armed Forces day

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LAoS March 8: international Women’s day

MEXiCo March 21: Birthday of President Benito Juárez

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ruSSiA March 8: international Women’s day ST. viNCENT and ThE GrENADiNES March 14: national heroes’ day SouTh AFriCA March 21: human rights day SyriA March 8: revolution day

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arm yourself with information.

APPOINTMENTS Gabon ouneida Bongo is assuming the position of first counselor (date to be determined), having previously served in the Permanent Mission of gabon to the united nations in new York. huguette M. noussodou is departing the post of communication and protocol counselor, having served in Washington since 2001. louise honorine nathalie Ba oumar is departing the post of second counselor, having served in Washington since 2008.

italy claudio Bisogniero became ambassador of italy to the united States on Jan. 18, after his predecessor, giulio terzi di Sant’Agata, became rome’s foreign minister last november. Ambassador Bisogniero returns to Washington after Ambassador having served as first Claudio Bisogniero counselor for economic and commercial affairs at the italian embassy from 1992 to 1996, with a special focus on financial issues and relations with the World Bank/iMF, think tanks and defense industry. More recently, he served as deputy secretary-general of nAto (2007-11) and director general for the Americas at the italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2005-07), responsible for italy’s relations with the

March 2012

Do you know what to do if there’s a chemical or biological attack in your community? How about a radiological explosion? In an emergency

united States and canada, as well as the countries of latin America. in February 2002, Ambassador Bisogniero was appointed deputy director general for political multilateral affairs, responsible for nAto, the united nations, organization for Security and cooperation in europe, g8, disarmament, antiterrorism and human rights. he also served in the division of Personnel and later with the office of the Secretary general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 1999 to 2002, as well as at the Permanent Mission of italy to the united nations in new York, with primary responsibility for political affairs and u.n. reform. other previous postings include the office of the diplomatic Adviser to the President of the republic, Francesco cossiga (1989-92); counselor at the Permanent Mission of italy to nAto in Brussels (1984-89); and first secretary for economic and commercial affairs at the italian embassy in Beijing (1981-84). Ambassador Bisogniero, who was born in rome on July 2, 1954, entered the italian Foreign Service in 1978. After graduating with a degree in political science from the university of rome with a dissertation in international economics, he completed his military service as an officer in the italian Army from 1976 to 1977. he is married to laura denise noce Benigni olivieri; they have a daughter and a son. hobbies and personal interests include classical music, reading, sailing and flying.

like that, knowledge and common sense will help you stay calm and safe. To find out what you need to know and do, visit www.ready.gov. Or, call 1- 800 -BE -READY (1- 800 -237- 3239) for a free brochure.

New Zealand rowena hume assumed the position of trade and economic counselor on Feb. 10, replacing Ben King, who left the post dec. 23.

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FOR RENT

COMMERCIAL EMBASSY ROW AREA — Embassy Office Space- DC/NYC Chancery Buildings/Residential Buildings - Embassy Row Area with parking. Ideal for embassies, law firms, foundations, etc. Lease or sale. LPC (202) 491-5300. Sir James The Diplomats Agent Agent has numerous other properties to show!

Diplomat Classifieds Sell - 301.933.3552

March 2012

FOR SALE

BETHESDA — SHORT-TERM RENTAL (June 4 – Aug.13, 2012) Elegant, 9 room Arts & Crafts-style home situated on a secluded, wooded property. The 4-BR/3.5 BA home is beautifully furnished, spacious, comfortable and ideal for entertaining. Located near D.C. in Bethesda; large, modern living room, open dining room seats 10; comfortable TV/family room and attractive, country kitchen. Cable TV and wireless Internet. Close to downtown Bethesda on RT36 bus line / 20-min. Metro train into D.C from Bethesda or 30-min. drive by car. Rental Rates: A) minimum 6-weeks of 10-week period ($1,750/week) for a total=$10,500. OR B) All 10-weeks ($1,390/week) for a total=$13,390. Security deposit required. Phone: (240) 499-8510.

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NOTE: Although every effort is made to assure your ad is free of mistakes in spelling and Georgetown –Commercial - For Sale content it is ultimately up to the customer to make the final proof. NOTE: Although every effort is made to assure your ad is free of mistakes in spelling and Ideal for Chancery use EMBASSY ROW — Beautiful 8,500 sq. ft. office itbuilding located content is ultimately up to the customer to make the final proof. Elegant Chancery style mansion in close proximity on Wisconsin Avenue with parking and elevator. The first two faxed changes will be made at no cost to the advertiser, subsequent changes to Embassy Row. Adjacent to the DuPont Circle Lease/Sale. LPC Commercial We specialize in working embassies. The first two faxed with changes will be made at noMetro costStation. to theParking. advertiser, subsequent changes will be billed at a rate of $75 per faxed alteration. Signed ads are considered approved. ServicesSigned Inc. (202)ads 491-5300. will be at a rate of $75 per faxed alteration. are considered approved. Please callbilled Guy d’Amecourt for further information. (202) 415-7800 or (202) 682-6261 Overlooking John Park, thisMark 10,000any sq. ft. masterpiece was ad. Please check Cabin this ad carefully. changes to your custom built in 2006 and blends traditional design with luxurious PleaseReal check this289-5400 ad carefully. Mark any changes to your ad. Summit Commercial Estate (202) SELL - BUY - RENT: 301-933-3552 If the ad is correct amenities & exquisite materials. An elevator needs services all 3 levels of sign and fax to: (301) 949-0065 changes this 7BR/6FBA/2HBA McAuley Park home, taking you from the If the ad is correct sign and fax to: (301) needs changes DIPLOMAT REAL ESTATE CLASSIFIEDS — 949-0065 entertaining to the933-3552 Chef’s Kitchen to the fabulous Owner’s The Washington Diplomat spaces(301) Place your real estate classifed today in the next PROFESSIONAL SERVICES Suite and down to the walkout Lower Level with media room, TheWashington Washington Diplomat (301) 933-3552 Diplomat by calling (301) 933-3552. wine/cigar room & much more! Offered at $3,279,800. Approved __________________________________________________________ MOnTGOMERY COUnTY Approved __________________________________________________________ For an appointment to see this elegant home Changes ___________________________________________________________ LIFESTYLE SPECIALIST — LAND/LOTS Changes ___________________________________________________________ Call Cindy Souza direct at 301-493-9878 or ___________________________________________________________________ Let me find the house for you! email Info@Tauber-Souza.com ___________________________________________________________________ Estate Land Assemblage. Unique Diplomatic Church School Compound-Style Property. Can build. Approximately 30,000 sq. ft. with parking. Metro 2 blocks. LPC (202) 513-6708.

Sarah G. Thomas, W.C. & A.N. Miller Realtors A Long and Foster Company sarah.thomas@longandfoster.com (240) 330-9048.

Best Value in Bethesda $3,150 for 4-Bedroom home

Best Value in Bethesda near NIH, Naval Hospital, YMCA, French School, Wildwood Shopping Center, Montgomery Mall, 495-Beltway. Walk to Fleming Park around the corner to enjoy tennis and a children’s plaground. Conveniently located near Grosvenor Metro on the Redline. Access to the excellent Montgomery County Public School System. • Sun-filled 4+ Bedrooms • Built-in Closets in Bedrooms • 2 Full Baths with Good Lighting • Lovely Living Room • Kitchen with Granite Counters • Fantastic Appliances • Hardwood Floors Throughout • Separate Large Dining Room

DupONT CIRCLE ApARTMENT RENTAL Major Reduction — was $3,650 now $3,200/month

Luxury • Location • Ambiance • Luxury • Location • Ambiance For the discerning person or persons desiring the finest in city living. Steps from cafes, restaurants, bookstores, galleries, embassies, museums, shops and more. 1 block to Metro red line. New windows throughout creating a soundless interior. FOYER: • Bright welcoming entrance illuminated by sunshine via a skylight • Beautiful tile flooring • 1/2 bath located in foyer with Granite counters & lovely mirror

Edward Avenue at Kingswood • 4th Bedroom in Basement, perfect for in-law suite • Situated on a Corner Lot • Excellent Landscaping • New Central Air • Covered Carport • Finished Basement • Covered Porch off of the Kitchen • Washer and Dryer

to View the Property Call Barbara at: 301- 320-0770 • 301-980-2990 March 2012

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LIVING ROOM: • Magnificent soaring cathedral ceiling full height of the apartment • New windows on all sides • Beautiful wood burning fireplace • Skylights throughout apartment • Mirrored Granite wet bar-Ideal for your entertaining, conveniently located between the dining room and living room • Shiny wood floor DINING ROOM: • Connected to the living room • Many windows allow light to shine and provide sweeping views of the city • Opens to living room providing extra space • Gleaming wood floors KITCHEN: • Gourmet state-of-the-art kitchen with modern appliances • Large window gives wonderful views of Connecticut Avenue and surrounding area • Beautiful granite counters • Washer and dryer • Gleaming tile floor

BEDROOM: • Floating carpeted stairs leading from foyer to very large bedroom area • Looking out of the windows from the bedroom area you see the steeples of surrounding beautiful buildings • Very romantic on a snowy night • Full bath with tub and updated fixtures and granite counters • Lovely mirrors and flooring

R Street NW at 19th St NW if you desire the finest in city living, please view the link below and contact us to make an appointment.

To View the Property Please go to Website:

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barbara fenton

301-320-0770 or 301-980-2990 The Washington Diplomat Page 47

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